Blackavar's Gift
by Loganberry
Summary: Finished at last! One of Watership's most renowned rabbits stops running, but why? And can Hazel's leadership survive the upheavals?
1. Here Ends a Tale

**Blackavar's Gift**  
  
_by Loganberry 2002-3  
  
Inspired by Richard Adams' wonderful novel, "Watership Down".  
  
A/N: This story is set at around the time of the events recounted in "Tales From Watership Down", and a few months after "Watership Down" itself. If you haven't read both books, then you might not appreciate some of the references, so go out and buy them today. If you have got them, go out and buy more copies!  
  
This story was previously published here under my now-defunct pseudonym of AndrewB._  
  
**Chapter ONE - Here Ends a Tale**  
  
"Hazel-rah! Wake up! Wake up! Come quickly!"  
  
Hazel was dozing in his burrow, full of a particularly excellent feed of lettuces which had fallen from the back of a hrududu at the bottom of the Down, a rare treat in the bleakness of early March. He was alone, Hyzenthlay - somewhat to the rest of the warren's surprise - having persuaded him to let her go out on a Wide Patrol with Campion. But his visitor's urgent, almost desperate, tone woke him immediately.  
  
"Why, Speedwell," said Hazel, "whatever is the matter? Calm down and tell me sensibly, there's a good chap."  
  
But all that he heard in return were a few, gasping words.  
  
"Oh, Hazel-rah, do come now, oh please!"  
  
And with that, he dashed off into the twisting tunnels of the warren, so fast that Hazel had some difficulty keeping up with him. They went on for some time, and Hazel's damaged haunch was beginning to cause him some pain, but at last he saw that Speedwell had stopped outside Blackavar's burrow. Hazel felt a pang of foreboding, but nevertheless he turned to Speedwell and asked him plainly to explain.  
  
"It's Blackavar," breathed the other, almost too low to be heard. "He's... he's..." - but he could say no more.  
  
"Stopped running," finished Hazel, feeling a terrible fog of despair envelop him. "But... how? Rabbits don't die underground."  
  
"I don't know," came the reply. "Blackberry's been in, and looked him over - there's not a mark on him, and no smell of disease anywhere."  
  
"I suppose that's a blessing, at least. This is going to hit everyone very hard, you know, Speedwell."  
  
The Watership warren had not been immune from death - one of the original band that set out from Sandleford, Acorn, had succumbed to a particularly severe spell of cold weather a few weeks before, and his loss had been felt keenly even by those, such as Bigwig, who had never had a great deal of time for him. But Blackavar's miraculous rescue from Efrafa, and subsequent rediscovery of his fine tracking skills, had been a source of pride and happiness for everyone at the warren, and he had come to be looked on as something of a lucky mascot. Having beaten such enormous odds to come out of Efrafa, his death after just a few months, as he was approaching his first spring as a truly free rabbit, would be a bitter blow indeed.  
  
"All right," said Hazel, trying to retain the calm leadership expected of him despite his own bewilderment and misery, "you go back to the Honeycomb and tell everyone I want to talk to them at ni-Frith. That will give me a little while to see if I can find out what's happened."  
  
When Speedwell had gone, Hazel cautiously entered the burrow. There could be no doubt whatever of the situation. Blackavar's cold, inert body was lying across the centre of the floor, still being gently nuzzled by his doe, Léaozen, who was crying softly. At Hazel's approach, she looked up and came over to him.  
  
"Oh, Hazel-rah," she whimpered, "what am I to do? I went out to silflay this morning, and when I came back..." She trailed off.  
  
Hazel was somewhat at a loss, and he cast about for the right thing to say. Eventually, he told Léaozen to go to a nearby empty burrow and sleep, while he sent for Blackberry.  
  
"I'm sorry, Hazel-rah," said Blackberry when he arrived. "I should have stayed here, but I had to go outside and pass hraka."  
  
"Well, never mind that now," cut in Hazel. "Poor old Blackavar - we shall miss him so. But it's an odd thing, isn't it, Blackberry? Frith didn't mean for rabbits to stop running in their warrens. What do you make of it?"  
  
"I... I don't really know, to tell you the truth," answered Blackberry. "He smells quite normal, and there's not a scratch on his body anywhere. He doesn't have the White Blindness, I don't have to tell you that."  
  
"Well, for the moment we shall just have to make do as best we can. And we shall certainly have to keep an eye on Léaozen, or she might wander off in her misery. We don't have that many does here since Flyairth left, and we can't afford to lose another one."  
  
"But what's to be done with Blackavar?"  
  
"I don't know. We can't leave him here, I know that much - the body will rot, and then we really shall have to worry about disease. Anyway, I should think it's getting on for ni-Frith now: we'd best get back to the others."  
  
The two bucks went back in silence. The runs were deserted - ni-Frith meetings in the Honeycomb were a rare occurrence, and everyone knew that Hazel or Hyzenthlay only called them if there was news of considerable importance to report. As they came closer, they could begin to make out the low hum of conversation; the subdued tone told Hazel that rumours of some dreadful misfortune had already reached his rabbits.  
  
Hazel was relieved to see Bigwig and Fiver waiting for him. He spoke to them quietly for a moment, and then they all three went to an open area at the far end of the Honeycomb, which had become established as the place for a speaker to hold court. Bigwig quietened the audience, and Hazel began. He decided that it would be best to be straightforward and direct.  
  
"I've called this meeting because I have to give you all some very bad news. Some of you may have heard rumours already that Blackavar has stopped running. Well, I'm afraid it's true. It's a desperate thing for everyone, especially those of us who remember how Bigwig here brought him out of Efrafa, but we shall just have to try to manage."  
  
The mood in the hall was very sombre. Almost to a rabbit they had greatly liked and admired Blackavar, and to be told that he was dead was a stunning blow. But Hazel had more to say.  
  
"I know we shall all miss him dreadfully, but there's another thing too. Blackavar died here, underground" - at this, there was a gasp of astonishment - "and none of us can understand why. So we have to think about what to do with his body - we can't leave it here, obviously. But as well as that, we need to find out what happened to him, in case whatever it was is a danger to us too. Fiver, Bigwig, Blackberry and Vilthuril, I'd like to talk to you afterwards: the rest of you, please try not to let this get to you any more than you have to; the rest of us have to stay alive. And keep an eye on Léaozen - but don't pressurise her into joining us again until she's ready."  
  
Hazel finished speaking, and Fiver took the floor.  
  
"I know some of you are wondering why I didn't say anything," he said. "But the truth is that I have no control over my feelings. Those of you who were with us all those seasons ago will remember that they didn't come for the lendri or the crow, and nor did they for poor Blackavar. But I will say this: I'm sure that it wasn't elil that killed him, and I don't think there's any reason for us to fear for our own lives."  
  
Fiver would say no more, and his brother ran through his joyless duty, as Chief Rabbit, to pay his respects to their lost friend. Rabbits do not ordinarily hold formal services on such occasions, but then Blackavar had been no ordinary rabbit. Holly, who had been one of Blackavar's closest friends, asked to say a few words about happier times they had shared on garden raids and in bob-stones games, and Bigwig, as close to overcome as Hazel had ever seen him, recounted the moment when he had resolved to take Blackavar with him out of Efrafa. At length, Hazel closed the meeting with the traditional rabbit tribute to a fallen comrade:  
  
"My heart has joined the Thousand, for my friend stopped running today." 


	2. Strawberry's Story

**Chapter TWO - Strawberry's Story**  
  
After the others had gone, the four rabbits whom Hazel had asked to stay behind gathered round him, and for a few moments they all sat in silence, each lost in their own memories of their dead friend. At length, Vilthuril spoke.  
  
"I really can't see how it happened, Hazel-rah," she said, "but I agree with Fiver that there doesn't seem to be any danger to the rest of us. What do you think, Blackberry? You've been with Blackavar."  
  
"To be honest, I simply can't make head nor tail of it. He wasn't injured, he wasn't ill and as far as Léaozen could tell me, he'd been perfectly happy a little while earlier when she went out to silflay. It's really a very strange thing indeed. What I do think we need to consider, though, is what to do about his body. Of course we'll have to move it, but where to? It'd have to be quite some distance - can you imagine how everyone would feel with Blackavar's body plain to be seen and smelt just outside the warren, not to mention all the crows and rats it would attract?"  
  
"You're quite right, Blackberry," said Hazel. "Well, at a time like this I suppose it's up to the Chief Rabbit to decide what to do - and we must do something soon, if only for Léaozen's sake. I only wish Hyzenthlay were here. I'd like you all to come with me to Blackavar's burrow, if you feel up to it. Perhaps one of us will be able to think of something there."  
  
It was with heavy hearts that the five rabbits made their way to Blackavar's hole, and while Vilthuril and Fiver went to comfort Léaozen, the others hopped slowly to their dead friend's side. Bigwig was deeply affected by the sight, and had trouble retaining his composure. Hazel pressed his nose under his flank.  
  
Bigwig sniffed around the body, trying to find some trace of a clue as to what had happened, but could find nothing. After a while, however, he returned to Hazel.  
  
"We need to move Blackavar quickly, Hazel-rah," he said. "There are already insects crawling over him, and they could be carrying disease."  
  
Hazel agreed, but where could they take him? At that moment, Vilthuril and Fiver reappeared, accompanied by, of all rabbits, Strawberry.  
  
"Look who we found," said Fiver. "He'd come over from Vleflain to catch up on old times - Groundsel-rah said that he could spare him for a few days. He was really looking forward to talking to Blackavar again - they've had quite similar experiences in a way, you know. What a shame that he came all this way to be met with such awful news."  
  
Despite their grief, the Watership rabbits were very pleased to see Strawberry again - all those who had been involved in the Great Journey to the Down had forged a close affinity through all their hardships. In happier times, his arrival would have been cause for great celebration; now, it merely leavened their anguish a little.  
  
"Well, Strawberry," said Hazel, "I'm sorry it's had to turn out like this. It really is the most wretched thing to have happened, isn't it? Seeing as you are here, though, perhaps you could give us any ideas you might have as to what to do with the poor fellow's body - you can see that we can't just leave it."  
  
Strawberry did not reply at once, but simply sat on his haunches and stared at the cold corpse of Blackavar. At length, however, he spoke.  
  
"I remember that this happened once back in my old warren, Hazel-rah." The others looked startled at this, as Strawberry rarely spoke of that dreadful place nowadays. "It was so unusual for us to lose anyone-" he stopped. "Except... well, you know. But there was a young buck by the name of Vernal. He was a friendly fellow, always ready to help someone with a problem, and we all got along well with him. But one day he didn't turn up for the flayrah. Of course, no-one said anything, because we all knew - thought we knew - what had happened to him. As we were going back to our burrows, though, I heard Nildro-hain calling me. She sounded very agitated, so I ran quickly to her, and she showed me what she'd found. It was Vernal, and he was lying there, dead, for all the world like Blackavar is now."  
  
Bigwig broke in. "So what did you do?"  
  
"Well, we got four of our strongest rabbits to take him to the farthest end of the warren, and we put him in a disused burrow and stopped it up, with strict instructions that no-one was ever to go there again. We never found out what had made him stop running. After a while he became almost a magical figure, to be mentioned only in stories."  
  
"Silverweed!" cried Fiver, so suddenly that the others jumped.  
  
"That's right," said Strawberry. "That poem he told us all, that made you run out of the burrow. It started as a sort of tribute to Vernal, but it became twisted and unnatural in that warren."  
  
"All right," said Hazel. "This warren isn't really big enough to do what you did, so we'll have to take him outside. Bigwig, go and get Silver, Holly and Bluebell, will you? Then go and see if you can find Kehaar: he might have some idea of what we ought to do."  
  
When Bigwig had gone, Vilthuril helped Fiver and Blackberry move Blackavar's body to a position where it would be easier to lift by the others. It took some effort, as Blackavar was a heavy buck, but each of them was spurred on by the wish to do right by their friend. Hazel had insisted on joining them at first, but he was feeling his old shotgun wound, and after realising that he was more a hindrance than a help, he settled for directing the others.  
  
After a while, Bigwig returned with the three others he had gone to fetch.  
  
"It's like this, Hazel-rah," said Silver. "Kehaar told us that there's an abandoned hole a good way over to the evening side of the wood, well away from our normal feeding grounds. It's rather close to the farm down there, but I suppose that can't be helped. It'll take us until sunset to get Blackavar there, I should think, but Kehaar has promised to guard us along the way. It rather puts me in mind of our first journey to Efrafa all that time ago."  
  
Holly, who was clearly still much troubled by what had happened, spoke slowly and quietly.  
  
"But that, despite all that went on, had a happy resolution, Silver. I can't see that we can take any compensation from today's events. Still, I suppose there's nothing we can do to change things now. Bluebell, you help me with the front of Blackavar's body; Bigwig and Silver take the back. Hazel-rah, would you go and talk to Clover for me, please? She and Léaozen are good friends, and I rather think she's more upset than she's letting on."  
  
Hazel assented, and accompanied by Vilthuril, set off for Holly's burrow, while Blackberry, Strawberry and Fiver returned to their own holes. Little by little, the four remaining rabbits dragged Blackavar's corpse through the runs, taking great care not to damage it in any way. Mostly the runs were empty, though they did see Hawkbit peering fearfully around a corner, only to whip his head back in after a sharp glance from Bigwig. It was exhausting work, and after reaching the mouth of the run they were glad of the chance to rest in the weak afternoon sunshine as they waited for Kehaar.  
  
"I don't mind telling you, Silver," said Bigwig when Holly and Bluebell were snatching a few mouthfuls of thin grass a little way off, "that rabbit meant a good deal to me. It was a chance in a thousand that we got him out of Efrafa. I'm sure Hyzenthlay... er... -rah was right when she said that the Owslafa would have killed him before too long, although I should think he might have stopped running anyway out of sheer misery. You were there the day Blackavar was arrested, so you know what it was like for him there under Woundwort."  
  
Silver said nothing, but moved closer to the battle-scarred veteran and helped him devour a particularly fine dandelion, which had somehow escaped the frost. 


	3. A Heart in the Frost

**Chapter THREE - A Heart in the Frost**  
  
When Hazel and Vilthuril arrived at Clover's burrow, they found her fast asleep, and rather than wake her settled down on either side, pressed close against her tense body, feeling the beating of her quick pulse and listening to her rapid, shallow breathing. The warm, watchful darkness and the all-pervading smell of rabbits were comforts to Hazel, but he still could not ignore the questions that beat against the inside of his head like some angry woodpecker on a rotten tree-stump. Why had Blackavar stopped running? How could he have died so suddenly? Would Léaozen let her own sadness get the better of her? Most of all, though, he wondered again and again whether he, as Chief Rabbit, whose gravest duty was to keep his people from harm, had overlooked some detail that might, just perhaps, have averted such a terrible outcome.  
  
As he considered all these things, Hazel became aware that Clover had woken, and that Vilthuril was whispering words of comfort to her. Despite her stress and exhaustion, she was grateful for the concern being shown for her, and readily accepted Hazel's invitation to talk.  
  
"I think that, in a way, it's harder for me even than Holly," she began. "It took me a long while to become comfortable with warren life after all that time in the hutch, and when Blackavar used to come down here to speak with Holly, he'd always make time to answer my questions and to give me advice. I remember when Scabious was small, only a few weeks after Bigwig beat Woundwort, he became very insolent and difficult, and wouldn't listen to a word I - or Holly - told him. He kept saying that he wanted to go on adventures with Silver or Campion-rah; it was ridiculous, because he was barely old enough to silflay, let alone go traipsing off on a Wide Patrol. Blackavar was the one who had the idea that Bigwig should take him, and his two brothers, along for Owsla lessons, to knock some sense into him if you like, and Scabious took to it like a duck to water. Of course, some rabbits have said that we don't really have a normal Owsla here, but then I've never known anything different, so it seemed perfectly ordinary to me. And I got on splendidly with Léaozen, too; we really came to understand each other well. We started to think that nothing could go wrong." She paused, and Hazel spoke.  
  
"You're certainly right that we don't go on like some other warrens," he replied, "but I think that's all for the best. After all, we've seen what can happen to a warren that thinks too much of orders and ranks, whatever Campion or Groundsel might say. But you must try to be strong, Clover. I'm only being honest when I say that the very future of our warren may depend on you now that we have so few does."  
  
In the long silence that followed, Hazel's thoughts returned to the day Clover had been brought out of Nuthanger Farm, a day which had brought success in the form of the warren's first does, but a success which had come so close to exacting the terrible price of Hazel's own life. Some of the younger rabbits, never having known the hardships the veterans had encountered, grumbled a little at what they considered their Chief Rabbit's obsessive determination to keep a reasonable balance of bucks and does, but his standing was high enough that it went no further - and besides, a dressing down from Bigwig was a punishment to be keenly avoided.  
  
At last, Clover continued. "I once listened to Thethuthinnang tell a story about Efrafa. She told us that the overcrowding there meant that the does could not kindle, and she said that she felt that her 'heart was in the frost'. I couldn't understand what she meant by that, and she hadn't the words to explain. But I think I know now."  
  
* * *  
  
"Vat you vant for me to do, Meester Pigvig?"  
  
"We need to get Blackavar to that hole you told us about, Kehaar, and before sunset too. I don't imagine many elil will fancy taking on the four of us, even if they don't reckon with you, but it's hard enough as it is carrying a load like this, and I'd rather not take any chances with owls having a go at Blackavar."  
  
"Ees goot! Meester Black'var, 'e vas plenty good fella. Vy 'e no run more?"  
  
"We don't know, Kehaar. It's a very bad thing to have happened, and we're all wondering what can have caused it. But we must start now."  
  
Without another word, Kehaar took off, and swooped in wide circles above the four rabbits as they made their inching progress south-westward across the down. As the sun began to sink towards the horizon, it shone almost in their eyes, lighting the ragged remains of Blackavar's ears so that they seemed to be glowing with a faint, silvery light, and sending shards of gold and crimson across the down, the long shadows of the line of trees extending their waving fingers across the open grass.  
  
No alarms interrupted their journey, and about an hour before sunset, they reached the hole of which Kehaar had spoken, a little way to the east of the narrow road that runs over the west side of the down before going on to Ecchinswell and Bishop's Green. The roofs of Ashley Warren Farm, just across the lane, seemed very near in the still, cold evening air. The scent of man and of dog was strong in the gentle breeze, and the rabbits, despite their Owsla training, had to resist their natural urge to bolt. Silver approached the hole first, and was surprised to find that it had no smell of rabbit; indeed, no smell of any wild animal at all, though there was a faint, and old, trace of a man's white stick.  
  
"You think it's safe, Bigwig?" he asked. "I can't help but be reminded of that Cowslip when I smell a white stick so close to a hole."  
  
"But, Silver, there's no smell of man any closer than the farm, is there? Only of the white stick. I think it must have blown here from the farm. And the grass hasn't been trampled. In any case, the scent's old, and there's no other smell here at all. I'll go and have a look inside to see if I can find a place we can leave the poor fellow. Won't be long." And with that he disappeared into the earth.  
  
Very shortly, he surfaced again. "Odd," he said. "It's almost like a small warren in there - no great hall, but side passages and so on. But in that case, why no smell of rabbits?"  
  
No-one had an answer to that, and even Kehaar could do no better than "I no know vat for. I no see 'im before". They decided that to delay would be more dangerous than to proceed, so - not without a certain amount of difficulty - the four bucks shoved Blackavar's body down the hole and into the entrance of one of the side passages. Once out, they then scratched at the earth above its entrance until it fell, blocking the hole completely. When they were satisfied that the run was properly stopped, they set off back to the beech hanger, this time at a much faster pace. The sun had set, and it was beginning to get dark, but Kehaar assured them that there were no owls in the vicinity. Their solemn task completed, the rabbits' mood lightened somewhat, and spirits began to lift.  
  
"Perhaps I should live in a hole like that," said Bluebell. "Then I could be Chief Rabbit all by myself. They call me Bluebell-rah you know, the elil run in fright. If I could tell you what to do-"  
  
"We wouldn't last the night," interrupted Silver. "Come on, let's get underground; it's going to be frosty tonight - and I could just do with a nice story to listen to while I'm chewing my pellets. Have you seen Dandelion today?"  
  
"He was teaching Pipkin how to tell stories yesterday evening," said Holly, "but I'm snared if I know where he's been today, to be honest. I assumed he was with us all at ni-Frith, but now I come to think about it I don't remember seeing him there. I hope he's all right: it would be rotten luck to lose two rabbits in one day."  
  
"Fiver didn't seem to think there was any danger, though," pointed out Bigwig.  
  
Fiver's stock among the veterans was as high as that of Hazel or Bigwig: no-one doubted that it was to him that they owed their very lives. So they had taken his comments at ni-Frith very seriously. Nevertheless, as he himself had said, he could not be expected to predict every one of the thousand dangers that might befall a rabbit, and the sight of an anxious Blackberry racing towards them as they came in sight of home did little to allay their concerns. 


	4. Stitchwort

**Chapter FOUR - Stitchwort**  
  
Rabbits, of course, are no strangers to death, and everyone in the warren knew well how fortunate they had been to have come through the depths of a hard winter with so few casualties. But for a rabbit of Blackavar's standing to have stopped running was quite another matter, especially coming as it had so soon after the death of Acorn. To a number of the Watership rabbits, it had begun to seem as though the extraordinary good fortune which had accompanied them during and since the defeat of Woundwort had finally deserted them; that El-ahrairah had at last turned his attention elsewhere.  
  
Hazel himself was resting in his burrow, still at a loss to understand the cause of Blackavar's death, and try as he might he could not prevent himself from feeling a responsibility he knew he need not. He was much troubled by his inability to understand what had happened, and was relieved to notice Pipkin at the entrance, waiting nervously to gain his attention. Hazel went over to him, and they touched noses.  
  
"Hullo, Hlao-roo," he said. "How have you been bearing up?"  
  
"I'm trying, Hazel-rah," answered Pipkin, "but it's been hard. I thought I'd go and see Hawkbit and Speedwell to see if I could cheer them up - tell them a story, that kind of thing."  
  
"Well done. But I didn't know you were a storyteller," said Hazel. "Which one was it?"  
  
"The Blessing of El-ahrairah," replied Pipkin. "Dandelion taught it to me: he said it was the first tale any storyteller ought to learn. I'm not very good at telling it yet, but the others seemed to enjoy it, anyway."  
  
"That was a good idea of yours, Hlao. I'm sure you've done those two a power of good; Speedwell particularly - he's been in a bit of a state. And you did a capital job when Holly first joined us, I remember - Dandelion spoke very highly of you for that. Where is Dandelion, anyway? I think we could all do with a story tonight."  
  
"I don't know, Hazel-rah. I haven't seen him today."  
  
"Nor have I: somehow it worries me not to know. Perhaps he's still in his burrow. Would you go and see if you can find him, please? Fiver, too, if he's around. There are a few things I'd like to talk over with him."  
  
"Right, Hazel-rah," said Pipkin, and disappeared into the run.  
  
Barely had he departed, however, than Fiver came hopping slowly into the burrow. He was accompanied by Strawberry, who had a worried, rather confused air about him.  
  
"I must talk to you at once, Hazel-rah," said Strawberry as soon as he had entered the hole. "Something very strange is going on in this warren." His voice took on a more urgent tone. "A few of the younger rabbits have been muttering that Fiver has lost his head - saying that it's ridiculous for him to tell everyone that there's no danger when one of our best rabbits has been struck down in an instant. I even heard one saying that he must have angered Frith in some way."  
  
"What on earth's got into them?" interrupted Hazel. "There didn't seem to be any sign of trouble at ni-Frith in the Honeycomb, and no-one can deny that Fiver's been right again and again ever since we left Sandleford. And to speak of Lord Frith like that... it's ridiculous."  
  
"I'm sure it's that Stitchwort fellow," continued Strawberry. (Hazel recalled Stitchwort as one of the heaviest of the Watership-born rabbits, confident and courageous but with a tendency towards arrogance and self-importance.) "He's been telling his friends that Fiver's been taking advantage of his position - saying that you do whatever he says because he's your brother. Fiver and I went to see if we could talk him out of it, but he wouldn't listen, and when we tried to reason with him, one of his gang - Knapweed, I think it was - struck out at me and said I was a traitor to rabbits who had no business in this warren in the first place. It was getting pretty unpleasant, so we got out and came up here."  
  
For the first time, Hazel noticed the long scratch that ran diagonally across Strawberry's face. It was shallow and not dangerous, but he was now becoming seriously perturbed. His own authority as Chief Rabbit owed a great deal to his ability to rule by consensus, common sense and the personal loyalty he inspired in others: if the dissension of which Strawberry had spoken were to spread, his position might come under genuine threat.  
  
"But I'll be snared if I change the way we do things," he thought. "If I have to start behaving like Woundwort to keep people in order, then it's not worth a thing." He briefly considered whether it might be in the warren's interests for him to stand down as Chief Rabbit. But there was no practical way that could be done with Hyzenthlay and Bigwig both out of the warren, and even if there were, where was there a rabbit who could unite the warren any more than he? No, he must remain: to do otherwise would be to destroy what had been bought at such high cost, to throw away all that had been gained. That would be a true betrayal.  
  
"Fiver," said Hazel, "are you certain about what you said to everyone in the Honeycomb this afternoon?"  
  
"I'm quite sure," came the reply. "But I can see trouble over this Stitchwort business. I think we're in for a bit of a rough time, if truth be told."  
  
As if to illustrate his point, at that moment Pipkin appeared in the mouth of the hole, breathing heavily and plainly frightened.  
  
"What on earth's the matter, Hlao?" asked Hazel as Pipkin came into the burrow. "You look half-tharn. And where's Dandelion? I asked you to bring him up here."  
  
Pipkin was about to reply when Dandelion crawled over the threshold, followed by Blackberry. They too were clearly worried.  
  
"I'm here, Hazel-rah," said Dandelion, and almost tumbled onto the floor of the burrow.  
  
"Where have you been, Dandelion?" asked Hazel. "You look a real mess; as though you've been out rolling in the nettles all day. Pipkin here says you were with him last night, but no-one seems to know what you've been up to since then. Perhaps you'd care to tell me."  
  
"Well, you see, Hazel-rah," answered Dandelion, "I was feeling a bit low this morning, so instead of going to silflay I went down to one of the winter burrows for a bit of a nap. I only meant to stay there for a short time, but I must have been more tired than I thought, as when I woke up it was getting on for sunset, so I thought I'd better get back up here quickly. As I got close to the hole, I saw that there was something wrong. I found Speedwell, who was filling me in about poor old Blackavar - and what a miserable business that is - when a couple of young bucks came running up to me and told me that Fiver had been causing trouble and that I wasn't to listen to him. What was that all about, do you know?"  
  
Hazel and Fiver explained all that had transpired during the day, and Dandelion continued.  
  
"Anyway," he said, "I told these rabbits not to be silly, that they were just upset and overwrought, but they started getting very hostile, growling at me and telling me to get out of their sight if I knew what was good for me. I was still feeling rather ill, and didn't want to make any trouble, so I went straight back to my own hole, keeping out of everyone's way, and went back to sleep. A little later, Pipkin came in and woke me up, saying you'd been asking for me. We passed Stitchwort and Knapweed as we came up here, but they didn't say anything - just sat there and stared. It wasn't very nice, I can tell you."  
  
"We need Bigwig and the others back here," said Hazel. "And quickly, too. Someone ought to go and look out for them. Not you, Dandelion, you're in no condition for it: Blackberry, would you go, please? And if you see Stitchwort on the way, tell him I'd like to see him here at once."  
  
Hazel broke off, as he realised that Stitchwort was already at the mouth of the burrow. But he was not alone. Knapweed was there, as was Frogbit, one of Thethuthinnang's sons, and several others were familiar to him. Blackberry understood in a flash what it must mean, and was out past the other rabbits before anyone else could move. 


	5. The Reckoning

**Chapter FIVE - The Reckoning**  
  
"Hrair," panted Blackberry, staring wildly and badly out of breath.  
  
"Are you quite sure about this, Blackberry?" queried Holly.  
  
"Yes, I'm certain. Hazel-rah had just sent for him, you see - but he meant for him to come alone, not with a great band of his followers in tow. Now come on - there's no time to be lost!"  
  
And with that, he turned and ran headlong towards the hole. The other four raced after him, and they arrived at the entrance virtually together, disappearing almost as one into the earth. Stitchwort had posted Frogbit as a sentry, but having rather more in the way of common sense than some of his friends, thought better of trying to stand up to the five others and remained above ground as the others vanished down the run.  
  
A little way inside the tunnel, Blackberry noticed Speedwell sheltering in one of the small side burrows.  
  
"Oh Blackberry, I'm so glad to see you back," he said. "There's been a whole lot of trouble at Hazel-rah's place. Stitchwort's there, and quite a few others, and they've been knocking over any rabbit who got in their way. I don't know exactly what's going on - they won't let anyone near the place."  
  
"They?" said Bluebell.  
  
"Knapweed and a few of his mates. They're blocking the way to Hazel's burrow completely, and when I tried to get past they started threatening me. Things look pretty bad, to be honest."  
  
"So will Stitchwort when I've finished with him," said Bigwig coldly.  
  
Speedwell seemed about to reply when there was a commotion from nearby, and Strawberry came running into the side-burrow, with Fiver and Dandelion hard on his heels. Strawberry's face had started to bleed slightly again, but they were otherwise unharmed.  
  
Strawberry spoke at once, the words tumbling out in gasping torrents. "We were all up in Hazel-rah's burrow - Pipkin too - when Stitchwort came up," he said. "Blackberry dashed out as soon as he saw him, but we didn't understand why at the time - we thought he just didn't want to hear a great row. We weren't really frightened of Stitchwort at first - you know how silly he can get sometimes - but then we saw just how many friends he'd brought with him, and we knew it was something more. He said that he'd had enough of Fiver's 'playing games with our lives'.  
  
"But where's-" began Bluebell. Strawberry ignored him, and continued his account.  
  
"Then he said that things needed to be settled in this warren once and for all, and that Hazel was the only one who could stay while they decided who was to be Chief Rabbit. It sounded completely ridiculous, of course, all the more so in the mouth of a jumped-up idiot like Stitchwort, but we could hardly say so: a whole lot of rabbits, even youngsters like these, baring their teeth at you is no joke, I can tell you. We were terribly outnumbered: there was nothing for it but to do what Stitchwort said and leave, although I must say I was sorely tempted to have a go for his throat. I couldn't see a way of getting at him without putting Hazel in more danger, though, so we really had very little choice."  
  
"But where's Pipkin?" persisted Bluebell.  
  
"He wouldn't leave Hazel," said Dandelion flatly. "We tried to persuade him to come, but in the end we had to go without him. It frightens me to think what might have happened to him."  
  
"We have to go back," said Fiver with absolute conviction. "Now. But I don't think it's going to be easy."  
  
"It's a bad lookout, I reckon," put in Holly, turning to Bigwig. "Stitchwort's not the rabbit to think things through before he does something stupid. I hope everyone here's been keeping their claws and teeth in good condition: we may very well need them."  
  
As he finished speaking, there came from the direction of Hazel's burrow an unmistakable and quite horrible sound: the agonising scream of a rabbit in the farthest extremity of terror. Fighting back his own fear, Bigwig dashed off towards the source of the sound, with the others hard on his heels.  
  
* * *  
  
There was quite a crowd gathered outside Hazel's burrow: in fact, although they could not know it, there were nine or ten rabbits there. Many of them had in fact been extremely nervous about Stitchwort's motives, having been bullied rather than persuaded into his circle, and had been persuaded to accompany him only with considerable reluctance. This feeling had become all the stronger since it had become plain just what Stitchwort intended to do; and the sight of an enraged Bigwig bearing down upon them, teeth and claws showing and a furious snarl on his face, was enough to push most into blind flight. None of Bigwig's group attempted to chase them: it was clear enough that their part in this was now at an end. Two rabbits, however, remained - Knapweed, who stood his ground, returning Bigwig's growl and scuffling threateningly at the bare earth beneath his feet; and Stitchwort himself, who was standing stock-still a little way inside the burrow, gazing at something beyond the others' field of view.  
  
"You repulsive little earwig," said Bigwig to Knapweed. He spoke very quietly, almost calmly, but there was no mistaking the bitter rage in his voice. "What have you done? And what's HE been up to?" (At this, he looked briefly at Stitchwort, who still had not moved an inch.) "By the Black Rabbit, if anything's happened to Hazel, I'll rip the both of you to shreds."  
  
As he spoke, first Silver, and then Holly and Bluebell, had come up behind him, and they too had a grim and angry look. At last, Knapweed understood that his position was hopeless, that Bigwig had meant every word of his threat, and that - should Hazel indeed prove to have come to harm - his friends would do nothing to prevent him from carrying it out. His body went limp and he began to cry and wail most piteously for mercy. Bigwig was in no mood to listen to pleading, however, and began to advance, slowly but determinedly, upon the other. It would have gone very hard with Knapweed had there not come at that very instant a welcome voice from within the burrow.  
  
"Bigwig? Is that you?"  
  
"Hazel-rah!" exclaimed Bigwig, with a voice that spoke unmistakably of his utter relief and joy. "Yes, it's me. Holly's with me, and so are Bluebell and Silver. Blackberry and Fiver are coming along behind us. We've got that miserable Knapweed down: I'll just deal with him, and then we can sort you out. That's one rabbit we won't be having trouble with again."  
  
"No, Bigwig: I don't want him killed. Bring him in here, please, and for Frith's sake do something about Stitchwort - and I don't mean tear him up, either. He's in no position to harm anyone now."  
  
"But Hazel-rah-" started Bigwig, as he came into the burrow, and trailed off. For he now understood why Stitchwort had not moved throughout the whole incident. Far from readying himself to pounce upon Hazel, he was quite tharn: utterly paralysed with fright and panic, his back legs twisted helplessly beneath his body at the most unnatural of angles. He was not looking at Hazel himself, but rather at a spot slightly to his side. Bigwig could not quite make out the object of his gaze.  
  
Hazel himself was sitting up on his haunches by the side wall of the burrow. His left ear was ripped a little towards the tip, and he bore what appeared to be a shallow bite mark on one shoulder, but otherwise he seemed in reasonable shape. A little way to his left, on the other hand, was what Stitchwort was staring at. It was not until Bigwig had come some way into the chamber that the cold certainty of recognition clutched at his heart, and he saw, a thin line of blood trickling from under his neck along the slightly sloping floor, the small, still figure of Pipkin. 


	6. The Very Edge

**Chapter SIX - The Very Edge**  
  
"It's all right, Bigwig," said Hazel, who had noticed his friend's expression of horror. "He's only exhausted: the strain's got to him rather, I should think. He'll be as right as rain before too long, just you wait and see."  
  
"But... the blood-"  
  
"It looks nasty, I know, but it's only a flesh wound: he was pretty lucky. All the same, we shall need to take care to keep it clean, as it's rather deep. I suppose he'll always have a scar there, but I don't think we need worry ourselves overmuch about it."  
  
As if in response to Hazel's words, Pipkin stirred slightly in his sleep, and muttered something, although the actual words were too low to be caught. His breathing was shallow, and a little laboured, but it was steady; and Bigwig's heart rejoiced at the sound.  
  
"What about you, though, Hazel-rah?" said Silver, who along with his companions had come into what was now a somewhat crowded burrow. "I take it that this miserable creature (he shot a contemptuous glance at Stitchwort) is the reason for the state of your ear and shoulder? Though you seem to have got away pretty lightly, all things considered."  
  
"Well, Pipkin here's the one to thank for that," answered Hazel. "I'm sure he'd like to tell you all about it himself, but it wouldn't be a good idea to wake him now, so I'd better tell you myself."  
  
Hazel now recounted all the dramatic scenes that had been played out in the others' absence. Stitchwort, it seemed, had initially appeared calm, though impetuous, putting forward the idea that Hazel should "get it into his head that Fiver might not have an answer to everything that ever goes wrong". Hazel had pointed out that neither Fiver nor he himself had ever made such a boast, but Stitchwort would not listen, and had grown angry, finally telling Hazel that, as he obviously cared only for what his brother told him, it would be better for everyone if both of them left Watership for good.  
  
Hazel had, of course, refused, and tried once again to make Stitchwort listen to reason - then, without warning, the youngster launched into a full-blooded attack, his needle-sharp front claws aimed squarely at Hazel's eyes. Hazel, with his weak haunch, could not leap aside quickly enough, and he might have been blinded at once had not Pipkin, who all this time had been virtually ignored by all concerned, flung himself between the two protagonists.  
  
Now it was Stitchwort's turn to be on the receiving end of a surprise, and he flailed and snapped about him wildly. It was quite by chance that a claw caught and ripped the end of Hazel's ear, but Stitchwort seemed to recover after this, and managed to sink his teeth into Hazel's shoulder, only to be immediately barged away by Pipkin. This time, however, Pipkin's effort had winded him, and he now lay between the other two, gasping and helpless on the ground.  
  
Stitchwort, seeing this, determined to kill Pipkin before he could recover, and then resume his battle with Hazel. He lunged at Pipkin's throat, scoring deeply along the underside of his chin. As the blood welled up in great dark droplets, and then began to flow freely, Pipkin's desperate energy began to leave him, and he found himself unable to rise. Stitchwort closed for the kill; but at a moment almost beyond the last, Pipkin sat up, looked directly into his eyes, and screamed.  
  
It was such a scream as none of the rabbits present had ever heard; it penetrated to the very core of their hearts, speaking of ghastly terror and hideous suffering beyond anything a living animal should understand. The hangers-on, waiting with Knapweed outside the burrow, had been whispering among themselves as they watched the fight unfold, but all were now stunned into quiet, and for a few moments there was complete silence. One by one, however, they returned to their senses - with the exception of Stitchwort, who remained quite still, gazing at the bleeding Pipkin as though he could not comprehend how such a thing could possibly have come about.  
  
"Knapweed was the first to recover," continued Hazel. "He seemed to be less affected than the others: I don't know why-"  
  
("Hasn't got the imagination," grunted Bigwig.)  
  
"-but he stood his ground anyway: he still had it in his head to guard the run outside, as Stitchwort had told him. Several of the other rabbits were obviously frightened by now, but they stayed put because they were more frightened of Knapweed. Thank Frith that Blackberry had the wit to get out and to go and hurry you along: I don't like to think what might have happened if you hadn't appeared when you did. Pipkin's the real hero here, in any case: He saved my life today, I'm sure of that."  
  
"So Stitchwort did mean to kill you?" said Bigwig. "And Pipkin, too. We can't simply let this pass and pretend nothing's different. Holly, d'you remember when you tried to stop us leaving the Threarah's warren and I attacked you? We knew we'd done it then all right, that there was no going back. To wound an Owsla officer was death; and to kill - or try to kill - the Chief Rabbit is far, far worse. There's no two ways about it, Hazel-rah: that rabbit's got to be killed."  
  
"That's exactly what you said about Stonecrop, and look how that turned out. I don't believe Groundsel would swap him for hrair of us. Of course, it was Fiver who really saw what to do there - and here he is now. Fiver, what do you make of it? Do you think Stitchwort will be all right now?"  
  
Fiver's eyes were glazed, and his head was held at a curious angle. "He may," he said woodenly, "and then again he may not. That rabbit lies on the very edge, and only Lord Frith himself can know if he will stand or if he will fall." He blinked, and his eyes returned to their usual appearance. "I'm sorry, Hazel, what was it you wanted to know?"  
  
"The very edge," said Bigwig impatiently. "What did you mean by 'the very edge'?"  
  
"I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean," said Fiver, confused. "Who spoke of an edge?"  
  
"You did, you vaporous veheer*!" cried Bigwig, but Hazel cut him short.  
  
"Now look here: it seems to me that there's a risk in whatever we do about Stitchwort, but for what it's worth my feeling is that he won't try anything like this again - in which case, how on earth can it be right to have him killed? All that would do is to make a martyr of him and give his friends a real reason to hate the rest of us."  
  
Bigwig exploded. "That embleer piece of hraka was trying to kill you! I'd like to see him dead just for that."  
  
"NO, Bigwig. You say you want me as your Chief Rabbit: if that's truly what you believe then, when it comes right down to it, you've got to obey my orders. And I'm telling you now - and this goes for the rest of you too; for the whole warren - that I don't want Stitchwort, Knapweed or anyone else killed, or hurt in any way, over this business. I won't have my rabbits killing just to suit themselves: that's how men behave."  
  
The other rabbits stared in total astonishment: never before had they heard Hazel issue Bigwig such a blunt rebuke. His final words had been a serious insult, and everyone knew it. Bigwig himself remained motionless, looking into Hazel's eyes and finding only a steady, resolute expression.  
  
"The very edge," thought Hazel.  
  
After what seemed an eternity, Bigwig subsided, speaking in a voice so low that the others had to strain to hear him.  
  
"I can't pretend I agree with you about this; but yes, of course I think you're the best Chief Rabbit we could hope for - and so should everyone else, after all the miracles you've worked for us. So I'll do what you say. I just hope you know what you're doing here, Hazel-rah, that's all.  
  
"So do I," replied Hazel.  
  
* * *  
  
It took some little time to get Stitchwort to move. The other rabbits alternately encouraged and pushed him, in the end half-dragging him to a sheltered patch of grass on the edge of a small clearing a little way into the beech hanger. Here they left him in the care of Holly and Bluebell.  
  
"Do see if you can bring him back to his senses," Hazel had said. "He might have been a bit of a silly duffer today, but when I said I didn't want him killed, I included elil in that; and he's not going to last very long if he comes out to silflay in that state."  
  
"Don't you worry, Hazel-rah," said Bluebell cheerfully. "We'll get Kehaar to give him a ride out to that Big Water of his. The fresh air will do him good, and if he causes any trouble Kehaar can always drop him in it!"  
  
"It strikes me," said Holly slowly, "that he's made a pretty good job of dropping himself in it."  
  
* * *  
  
Back in his burrow, the earth still stained here and there with ruddy patches, Hazel had gathered together a group of his best rabbits. Bigwig and Fiver had been joined by Blackberry, Vilthuril and Silver - and also Pipkin, who was now awake, and despite the pain in his neck was extremely proud of the part he had played in defending his Chief.  
  
"And so he should be," said Blackberry. "I tell you what, Hazel-rah: if you and Hyzenthlay-rah ever feel like a bit of a rest from Chief Rabbiting, you could do worse than this little chap."  
  
"A lot worse," agreed Hazel. "You've done wonders, Hlao - Hlao-rah! (Pipkin looked slightly embarrassed at this.) Though everything's been so tangled up that we've rather forgotten about poor old Blackavar, haven't we? I hope you managed to get him to that hole Kehaar was talking about."  
  
"We did," answered Silver, "though it was a pretty queer sort of hole, so Bigwig said: almost like a regular rabbit warren, but, well-"  
  
Bigwig continued. "It wasn't that it felt at all dangerous - quite the reverse, in fact - or like Cowslip's place, but all the same it unsettled us rather."  
  
"What did Kehaar make of it?" asked Blackberry.  
  
"He couldn't work it out either. I suppose it might have been some sort of man-thing, but there was no smell at all - except from the farm, of course."  
  
Vilthuril now spoke. "I can't be certain, but it sounds a little like something I once heard about from the secret river in Efrafa. It was very faint - neither Hyzenthlay nor Thethuthinnang could make it out at all, and even I had to strain - but from what Bigwig and Silver have said, it fits: a tunnel with no smell near a road. I never heard of it again, and Flyairth never spoke of it, so I can't tell you any more than that."  
  
"In any case," said Silver, "whatever sort of a tunnel it might have been, we made sure we stopped it up good and proper: Blackavar can't be smelt at all from the outside now, so let's hope he can be left in peace. And let's see if we can't have a bit of peace for ourselves now, shall we? I'm still waiting for Dandelion to tell us his new story."  
  
But Silver's hopes were dashed almost immediately, as Holly burst into the burrow.  
  
"What are you doing in here?" asked Hazel, with more than a touch of irritation. "I thought I told you to look after Stitchwort."  
  
"Not a lot of point in that now," replied Holly. "He's dead."  
  
===========================  
* veheer - a rabbit with intuitive powers 


	7. The Dark Before the Dawn

**Chapter SEVEN - The Dark Before the Dawn**  
  
Hazel felt annoyed, and the sight of Bigwig and Bluebell returning only served to deepen his irritation.  
  
"There were four of you looking after Stitchwort," he pointed out. "Surely that ought to have been enough to have kept him out of harm's way. What happened, anyway?"  
  
Holly sighed.  
  
"Well, you see, Bigwig and Silver had been talking to him for a bit; trying to get him to snap out of it, 'sort of thing, but they didn't seem to be getting anywhere, really. Then, all of a sudden, he sat bolt upright and hared off down the hill towards where we'd taken Blackavar earlier. Of course we went after him, but he'd startled us so that there was quite some ground to be made up. Silver has a handy turn of speed in him, though, and managed to get himself within earshot - I could just hear him calling after Stitchwort that he was running himself into trouble."  
  
At this point, Silver himself appeared, utterly exhausted. Rabbits do not sweat, but the dishevelled fur and mottled patches of dry earth that clung to his heaving pelt told an eloquent story. After recovering his breath, he took up the story:  
  
"Somehow I knew that Stitchwort could hear me, although he showed no sign of replying, so I kept on calling. But he just carried on running - it was all I could do to keep up with him. That rabbit has - had, I suppose I should say - a fine pace, I can tell you.  
  
"After a bit, we arrived at the road near Ashley Warren farm. The smell of dog and man was so strong it was almost unbearable, but I forced myself to go on for Stitchwort's sake - for some reason he didn't seem to be affected by it at all. But there was also a great roaring noise - louder than a farm hrududu; it even put me in mind of the Messenger that saved us from the Efrafans. Stitchwort was out of his mind with fear - and he was in the middle of the road.  
  
"The others had caught up with me by now, and we were all squatting in a ditch by the side of the field, wondering what we could do. It was quite out of the question to go into the road and try to force him back to us - all we'd have done is to end up fighting again, and we had to avoid that at all costs. Oh, if only we'd had a Blackberry or a Fiver amongst us to think up some clever way to rescue him.  
  
"We were all pressed up close in this ditch, and suddenly I felt Holly beside me tense his whole body. I looked at him, and he was staring, not at Stitchwort, but a little way farther down the road: it was clear he had the real horrors. I asked him what was the matter, and he just managed to force out, 'Inlé! Inlé in its paws!' I had no idea what he was talking about, and I started to worry that now, of all times, he was going mad.  
  
"Then we saw it. Moving along the lane, quite slowly, was a huge hrududu. I noticed that it was the colour of charlock, and suddenly I understood what Holly had meant. This must have been much the same sort of hrududu as the one that destroyed the Sandleford warren."  
  
None of the rabbits said a word; there was no sound in the burrow but for sharp, shallow breathing and quick, tense pulses. Most of the rabbits present had heard that dreadful tale from Holly's own mouth, while Vilthuril had seen horrors of her own in Efrafa to equal any that Hazel's veterans might have known. In the intense quiet, the hooting of an owl from far above could be clearly heard.  
  
It was Holly himself who broke the silence.  
  
"Remember how Bigwig once told us about the white lights these hrududil carry at night?" he asked. "Well, this one had those all right, but it also had two great flashing horns upon its head that cast strange shadows all about on the hedges and walls. And its front paws had great pads of long, straight, tough fur, and all the while they revolved with the most deafening sound. And there was Stitchwort sitting tharn not a fieldsbreadth away as it bore down upon him. From where I was, I couldn't see any more-"  
  
"I could," interrupted Bigwig. "I'd got myself around to the front of the ditch, to see if there was any way I could attract Stitchwort's attention. It seemed a pretty hopeless case, but I felt I couldn't just sit there like a fool if there was anything I could try, however unlikely, that might save him. By this time, the lights on the hrududu's head were almost blinding me - the constant flashing meant that I couldn't get a clear idea of what was going on.  
  
"But one thing I did see was the hrududu reach Stitchwort. One of those great rotating paws Silver mentioned hit him, and he was scooped straight into its gaping maw. All the while, he never made a sound. I'm telling you, Hazel-rah, it was the worst thing I've ever seen; even when I was in... Efrafa, I don't believe I've ever been quite so frightened. To be honest, I thought I'd go tharn myself."  
  
"What terrible allies men make," said Vilthuril quietly.  
  
* * *  
  
The next morning, Hazel sought out Frogbit and Knapweed, and explained what had happened to Stitchwort, stressing that neither he nor Hyzenthlay would allow them to be victimised ("no, not even by Bigwig. ESPECIALLY not by Bigwig," he answered Knapweed's faltering question). Hazel was relieved to find that neither blamed him in any way, and both assured him that their days of insubordination were now firmly behind them. Frogbit, a rather nervous rabbit at the best of times, even went so far as to call Hazel, "Sir", for which he was gently but firmly rebuked.  
  
The warren was in dire need of some good news, and so the return of Hyzenthlay just after ni-Frith lifted spirits a good deal. Hazel was elated to see his mate again, and was happy to hear that the Wide Patrol had gone without a hitch. Word of Blackavar's demise had reached her, in mangled though recognisable form, from a couple of fieldmice, but she had not known anything of Stitchwort's challenge to Hazel, or of his grisly demise, and she was deeply saddened by the loss of two rabbits within such a short space of time.  
  
More was to follow. Kehaar appeared unexpectedly just before sunset, and informed Hazel and Hyzenthlay that he had met a party of buck and three does - hlessil who had banded together for protection, they said - at the foot of the hill, who had expressed their wish to join Watership. Hazel sent Bigwig and Blackberry to meet them, and they returned with the news that they all seemed young, strong and intelligent, were possessed (in Bigwig's forthrightly expressed opinion) of a good bit more common sense than most of Watership's existing residents, and should make an excellent addition to their warren. The loss of Blackavar and Stitchwort had compounded the problems which had arisen when Flyairth and many does had left, so Hazel was delighted. The new rabbits had made scrapes for the night where they were, and would arrive in the morning.  
  
As if this were not enough, Léaozen now felt well enough to rejoin the daily life of the warren. She was still upset, and only half-heartedly joined in the games which Hawkbit and Speedwell put on for her, but Clover and Thethuthinnang made sure that she always had companionship, and she clearly enjoyed Dandelion's recitation of "Rowsby Woof and the Fairy Wogdog," which even Bigwig, who considered himself something of a connoisseur on the matter, believed was the finest he had heard.  
  
All in all, thought Hazel, as he lay close beside Hyzenthlay after the evening silflay, things could have been a great deal worse. Had it really been just a day ago that he was facing a crowd of rabbits who wanted him out - indeed, some of whom wanted him killed? Stitchwort's death had shaken everyone, but the forthcoming arrival of four new rabbits would compensate for that and more. They had all seen today what the Black Rabbit could bring down upon them; yet they had also known the protection and help of Lord Frith. Hazel gazed once more at the sleeping form of his mate and, by degrees, himself drifted into the balm of unconsciousness. 


	8. Something Old, Something New

Chapter EIGHT - Something Old, Something New  
  
The next morning dawned clear and cool, yet with the promise of unseasonable heat later in the day. Hazel slept late, and eventually had to be woken by Hyzenthlay. However, all the stresses and strains of recent days had left him, and he felt a great determination that Blackavar should be returned to his rightful place at the centre of the warren's discussion until such time as his mysterious death might be explained.  
  
"I've sent Silver and Frogbit down to get the newcomers," said Hyzenthlay a little while later, as the two rabbits silflayed together on the borders of the beech hanger. "I thought it might do Frogbit a bit of good to see that we don't mean to shut him out. He seemed pleased, anyway, though Silver was a bit put out. He came around eventually, though."  
  
"I'm glad to hear that," answered Hazel. "Whatever we might say in the Honeycomb, I can't imagine that Frogbit's going to have a very easy time here for a while, and the same goes - all the more so - for Knapweed. I hope all the trouble's over now, but you never can be sure. Sometimes everything will be calm for days, and then all of a sudden you'll get fights and arguments and Frith knows what else besides. After all, we've seen that for ourselves."  
  
Fiver appeared from behind a clump of nettles.  
  
"Hullo," he said. "Isn't it a fine day? Vilthuril thinks it the best she's ever seen, but then it's her first spring out of Efrafa, and I can't imagine Woundwort was much of a one for letting his rabbits sit around admiring the landscape in any case. How are you feeling, anyway?"  
  
"Well, this ear-tip is going to be a nuisance for a while - I shall have to keep away from bramble and hawthorn, or I'll rip it more badly - but my shoulder isn't too painful. I say, I'm starting to feel like Bigwig, what with all these wounds! I just hope we're going to have a bit of peace for a little while at least, so we can try to get to grips with finding out whatever it was that did for Blackavar." At this, he looked questioningly at his brother, who understood his meaning at once.  
  
"I don't think there's going to be any more fighting, if that's what you mean," replied Fiver. "Something bothers me about one of the new rabbits, though, but I can't tell which one, or whether it's good or bad."  
  
Hazel sighed.  
  
"Whatever it is, I don't expect I shall be allowed a moment's peace. You know, Hrairoo, sometimes I almost wish you didn't have these visions."  
  
"If I didn't, you wouldn't be in a position to be wishing anything," pointed out Fiver, shortly.  
  
* * *  
  
It was almost ni-Frith by the time the welcome party returned. Hyzenthlay had gone underground to shelter from the sun's unyielding glare, and so her mate remained alone at the warren's entrance, gazing out over the wide vista of the Hampshire countryside. He was relieved to see that Silver and Frogbit had put aside their differences, and the youngster was listening with great excitement to Silver's tales of high adventure. Alongside them was a lean, fit-looking buck, who loped easily across the springy turf, throwing up droplets of dew where they remained in the shadows. His fur was a rusty brown, and his eyes shone with alertness and the vigour of youth. Hazel was delighted - just the sort of rabbit the Warren needed, he decided.  
  
"We're back, O Hazel-rah," called Frogbit. "And this is-"  
  
"Wait a minute," interrupted Hazel. "I thought there were three does as well. Where are they?"  
  
"It's probably best to let our new friend answer that," replied Silver - with a hint of irritation, it seemed to Hazel.  
  
The brown rabbit left the other two, and hopped over to Hazel. He had a friendly, easy-going manner, and his Lapine was easy to understand, if perhaps a little more informal than Hazel had hitherto been accustomed to.  
  
"Frithaes, Chief," he said. "And greetings to that fine mate of yours, as well. Joint Chief Rabbits, eh? Well I never. Anyway, you were asking your sidekicks here why there's only the one of me. Good question, really. You see, last night, a bit after those other rabbits you sent had gone - Blackberry, was it? And Bighead-"  
  
"Bigwig," snapped Silver.  
  
"Yeah, right. Bigwig. Anyway, we'd all kipped down for the night, though we were a bit on the jump because we'd heard a lot of owls about. But just as I was getting off to sleep, I heard this voice just on the edge of hearing, talking to Bralvaora* about something. Well, I pricked my ears up a bit - as you do - and it was another rabbit speaking. I could see out of the corner of an eye that it was a big doe - the kind you don't mess with if you value your tail - and she was having a right go at Bralvaora, saying she was a selfish rabbit for leaving the warren, and that she ought to stop being so embleer stupid."  
  
Hazel and Hyzenthlay looked at one another, but it was Fiver who spoke up.  
  
"This large doe," he said. "Her name wasn't Flyairth, by any chance?"  
  
"Yeah," said the newcomer. "How did you know?" Then, answering his own question, "I s'pose she's not the kind of rabbit to keep herself to herself. Anyway, all the does had come from that warren - not me, though; I've come a lot further than that. I just met up with them at the bottom of the hill here, actually, but I was glad I had them with me overnight; it's no place for a lone hlessi, this. When Blackberry and Bigears-"  
  
"Bigwig!"  
  
"-came along, we thought it'd be safer if we pretended we'd all been together from the start, y'see. We thought you might try to split us up or something. Not that it matters now - Bralvaora gave in after a while. Flyairth was awfully persistent, and I think they just got fed up with being moaned at. I felt like having a go at her, but she'd probably have torn my head off. In the end, when she went, the others followed her. So you've just got me."  
  
"Terrific," muttered Silver.  
  
Hazel invited the new rabbit into the warren, and took personal charge of his comfort and security - after allotting him a pleasant, airy burrow, Hazel showed him around, and could not help feeling a touch of pride at the awe with which the warren's latest addition regarded the Honeycomb.  
  
"As it's ni-Frith, we might as well call a meeting now," he said to Hyzenthlay. "I wouldn't normally bother for one new rabbit, but as everyone's had such a rough time recently, I think it might do them a bit of good to hear something positive for a change."  
  
Hyzenthlay concurred, and the warren began to gather in the large chamber. Hazel and Hyzenthlay squatted on either side of the brown rabbit, and enjoyed the effect as the assembling crowd in the hall exchanged glances and whispers. Most of the rank and file had not known about any new rabbits, and rumours flew with great abandon. Was this strange rabbit a spy? Was he an envoy from another warren? Perhaps a hlessi taken in for his own protection, though his shining pelt and sharp eyes made that unlikely.  
  
Hazel waited until most of the rabbits had arrived, and began.  
  
"I'm sure you're curious about our guest," he said. "Well, he's come to join us. From what I've seen, I don't think he's going to have much difficulty in settling down here, but I'd like you to do what you can to make him feel at home, if you would. He's come a long way, by all accounts, and I'm sure he'd like to feel himself among friends here. Silver here was telling me on the way up that he's an excellent bob-stones player, so perhaps some of you could let him in on your games. I think that's all I really need to say about that. We really do need to get back to considering poor old Blackavar, though. It does seem like a long time ago now, but whatever killed him may be dangerous, if not to us then to other rabbits, and I really don't see how we can go on without putting our heads together a little, and-"  
  
"Come on, what's his name, then?" came a voice from the audience. It was Hawkbit. Bigwig rounded on him in irritation, grinding his teeth, and was about to lay into the smaller buck, but Hyzenthlay cut him short.  
  
"You're quite right, Hawkbit," she said. "We're being rather poor hosts here, aren't we; neglecting our duties? I think we should let our new friend introduce himself."  
  
Hazel and Hyzenthlay hopped aside, and allowed their guest to speak.  
  
"Hullo, everybody," he said. "Nice to be here, and I'm highly impressed by this place, you know. Nice little thing you've got going here. I'd like to thank Rahs one and two" - Bigwig looked even more annoyed at this, growling under his breath - "for their really nice welcome, and I hope I'll be able to be of some use to this here warren. Anyway, you probably want to know a little bit about me. My name is-"  
  
But the rest was supplied by another, in a low whisper that nevertheless carried clearly from the back of the hall, where the speaker had been crouching uncomfortably in the shadows by the Honeycomb's entrance.  
  
"Vernal," gasped Strawberry. "Vernal!"  
  
===  
* Bralvaora - "hope-friend" 


	9. The Dying Light

Chapter NINE - The Dying Light  
  
There was a state of general confusion in the Honeycomb. Only a few of the rabbits present understood the significance of Vernal's name: the majority had no idea of the reason for Strawberry's sudden descent into a state bordering on the tharn, and, frightened and bewildered themselves, took some considerable calming down before it was possible for Hazel to ask Strawberry himself to come forward and explain.  
  
"Now then, Strawberry," he said, "whatever did you mean by calling out Vernal's name like that, just as our friend here was about to introduce himself? You must know as well as I that this isn't Vernal."  
  
"Oh, but I AM Vernal, Hazel-rah," came the quiet voice of the newcomer. "I've been trying to tell you that all this time. And yeah, I know this Strawb type - remember him from that embleer Shining Wire place, y'know."  
  
Hazel was startled into silence by this news, and so it was Blackberry who spoke next.  
  
"Vernal, we don't want to seem rude, but Strawberry here is convinced he saw your body, a long time ago. Maybe you could explain to us just how you got here?"  
  
"Well, it's fair to say I've had a bit of the old luck on my side, so to speak. I've not had much experience as a hlessi, as you might imagine, and so staying out the way the Thousand's been summat of an overriding worry. Mind you, falling in with those does was a major stroke of luck - even if they did buzz off with that Flyairth type in the end."  
  
There was more noise from the assembled rabbits at the mention of the burly doe's name, though this time with a noticeably more negative, even hostile, tone to it. Hazel and Hyzenthlay had done their best to ensure that Flyairth did not become an obsession with the rest of the warren, but it could not be denied that she had been the major cause of Watership's current lack of does, and even before Blackavar's death this had caused its share of minor scuffles and arguments. Flyairth's name had become almost a term of abuse in some quarters of the warren.  
  
Bigwig spoke up.  
  
"What we don't understand, Vernal, is - as Blackberry just said - Strawberry's seen you dead. How can you be dead and alive at the one time?"  
  
"I'm really not at all certain what's gone on, you know," answered Vernal. "It really does seem a rum business, looking back on it. You see, I remember coming into the main hall of our warren - the old one, I mean - on my way to see my doe, Anisthimi, and all of a sudden I felt all my strength leave me. I'd been feeling tired lately, hadn't I?" - he glanced up at Strawberry, who had now recovered enough to signal his agreement - "so it wasn't all that surprising, but this time it was much worse, and I found that I couldn't move at all, or even speak."  
  
Hazel noticed that Vernal's manner of speech had changed markedly since he began his story. Gone was the informal, almost silly attitude to the others, and in its place had appeared a determined seriousness. He said nothing of this, however, and allowed the other to continue.  
  
"Then, the world started to disappear in front of my eyes. Not into black, but into a kind of shimmering gleam that hid everything else from view. There was no pain, but it was rather frightening, I can tell you, especially as I had no idea what was going on. I was half expecting the Black Rabbit to call out to me, to tell you the truth, but nothing of the sort happened.  
  
"The next thing I knew, I was lying in what felt and smelt like an old burrow, but the queer thing was that there were no entrances at all, or if there were they'd long since filled in. Strange, I thought. Actually, it was almost as if the place had been deliberately stopped up-  
  
"It had," interrupted Strawberry suddenly; and he explained.  
  
"I see," resumed Vernal. "But what was odd about it was that all my fear and worry had left me, and I knew I could dig as well as any young rabbit. I could see a little, too, which was strange in such a blocked hole. So I began to make my way through the earth - don't ask me how I knew which was the right way to go, but I was certain of it - and before long I was out in the open. It can't have been very far from the warren, but I didn't recognise the countryside at all. I suppose that's what living in a place like that does to you. Still, I kept a close lookout for... for wires as I went.  
  
"A little later on, I ran across an old buck lying in the grass, a strange white and brown blotchy colour, who had been badly wounded in the neck. I went up to him, and asked if I could help, but from the look he gave me I knew that he was near to death. However, before he died, he told me about how he had come to be there.  
  
"This buck - Tulip, his name was - told me that he'd been a hutch rabbit, living in a box in an old shed at the corner of a farm. The farmer never came into this shed, though - it was a child who was the only human Tulip saw, and she would often only come very early in the morning, before dawn sometimes, or when the farmer was at the other end of the fields. This girl would bring flayrah for him, or pet him, or even play games with him.  
  
"Of course, Tulip was rather lonely on his own, and sometimes he felt keenly his lack of a doe to keep him company, but the human girl was so kind to him, and would spend so much time with him stroking and cuddling him that he almost felt he could understand her, and after a while, so Tulip said, he decided that he didn't really want a doe any longer, as he was getting old and in any case the girl was such a good companion to him."  
  
"So why didn't Tulip stay with the human child?" queried Silver.  
  
"That's the awful part of it," replied Vernal. One day the girl was in the shed feeding Tulip, and the farmer came in behind her, and started shouting and waving his arms about. The girl shouted back, and then began to cry loudly. Of course Tulip had no idea what was going on, but then the man went outside for a moment - and returned with a shotgun."  
  
The Honeycomb was now completely silent with shock, and in the moment before Vernal continued the wind could be heard in the beech trees far above.  
  
"Anyway, when she realised what was happening, the girl screamed - and I don't know whether you've ever heard it, but a young human's scream is very similar to a rabbit's, you know - and then she ran over to stand in front of Tulip's hutch. The farmer shouted and waved his gun and pointed, but the girl wouldn't move."  
  
"You mean that this human would have let herself be shot rather than Tulip?" asked Holly, in a somewhat disbelieving tone.  
  
"Well, I don't think it would have come to that," said Vernal. "Humans don't shoot their own kittens. But she was clearly very upset, and the farmer was clearly very angry.  
  
"Tulip said that, for reasons he could not understand, after a while both humans left, and then just the farmer returned, without his gun. He lifted up the hutch - with Tulip still inside - and put it in the back of his hrududu, which he then drove for a long time up the road, after which he put it down on the grass and tipped Tulip out, before driving back the way he had come.  
  
"He was a hutch rabbit, of course: had never been free, so had no idea how to cope in the open world-  
  
"A bit like me," said Clover softly from the floor.  
  
"-and so when a hunting stoat came along, he never realised it until it was on top of him. He managed to fend it off in the end, but not before it had given him a great wound along his throat. He was just beginning to tell me about how he'd fared since when a sudden choking fit took hold of him, and I knew it was the end. His last words were, 'I shall wait for her' - I don't know why."   
  
"I do," said Dandelion, who had remained silent until now. "It's a story I heard a long, long time ago from a hlessi, but I'd always thought he was quite mad until now.  
  
"You see, there was a time when El-ahrairah was separated from his warren, and even from his faithful servant Rabscuttle, and captured by men. And he was shut up in a hutch with another rabbit. The men weren't cruel to them, but they made very certain every night that the hutch was secure, and so El-ahrairah had no option but to stay, and to make friends with the other rabbit, a doe called Anisthimi*. And with a human boy, who - just like the farmer's daughter who was so good to Tulip - spent a long time every day with the rabbits, and treated them with love and respect.  
  
"Of course, El-ahrairah being El-ahrairah, he was so charming to Anisthimi that they became mates, and before very long she was pregnant. But when the time for kindling came, it soon became clear that something was terribly wrong, and Anisthimi was in awful pain. El-ahrairah tried all he could, but it was no use, and both doe and kittens were soon dead.  
  
"Shortly afterwards, the boy came into the building where the hutch was kept, and - again, just like the girl Tulip knew - started to cry. He took out the body of Anisthimi and held her against him, not caring about her blood running down his face and mingling with his own tears as he gently stroked her sodden fur.  
  
"El-ahrairah was so touched by this that he appealed to Frith. 'My Lord,' he said, 'must there be such sadness and despair in the world of men and in the world of rabbits when they are torn asunder?'  
  
"'What is, is what must be,' came Lord Frith's expected answer. 'But I will show mercy upon you, El-ahrairah, for you have shown yourself to be a rabbit of compassion and feeling. I will command Prince Rainbow to build a shining bridge between the other-world of the Men - for they have one as well, El-ahrairah - and the other-world of the Rabbits. And not only rabbits, El-ahrairah, for there are humans who care for cats, dogs, birds and many other animals as though they were their own heart-brothers.  
  
"'The other-worlds themselves must forever remain closed to each other's species, for that was never meant to be. But when an animal dies who has been a friend of a human, then in time unknown and unknowable, they may meet again in death as they did in life, there upon Prince Rainbow's Bridge.'"  
  
------------------------------------  
  
* Anisthimi - "daughter of the wind" 


	10. Reflections

Chapter TEN - Reflections  
  
When Dandelion had finished, Blackberry turned to Vernal.  
  
"You said that your doe's name was Anisthimi too, didn't you? Was she named after the hutch rabbit in the story?"  
  
"Yes," answered Vernal. "Of course in most warrens it's rather unusual for rabbits to be named after such folk heroes unless they're high-born, but as you know we generally didn't take the old tales as seriously as other places, and so there seemed no reason to worry about it. She is - or was, I don't know - very fond of that name, though, and whenever she spoke about it her eyes would shine with pride at such a connection with El-ahrairah. Actually, we used to joke about it sometimes, and she'd scold me for not looking after Rabscuttle properly and so on."  
  
Hyzenthlay spoke up.  
  
"Well," she said. "yours is certainly an extraordinary tale, Vernal, and I don't doubt that you are sincere in what you say. But we really must get back to poor Blackavar. It's been quite a while now since he died, and we've hardly got anywhere. Every time we turn our attention to him, something seems to crop up that can't be put off. I'm starting to wonder whether we'll ever find out the solution to this mystery."  
  
"Oh, I'm sure you will," said Vernal. "I hope so, anyway - from what I understand, Blackavar was a rabbit considerably out of the ordinary. I've heard all about his exploits in Efrafa, you know."  
  
Vernal's voice was soft and steady, but that was deceptive: Fiver, watching his eyes with rapt attention, was all too aware of the deep emotions playing deep within the other rabbit's being - the intense attachment he felt to Anisthimi mingling with a barely suppressed despair at the thought that he might never see his mate again. There was something else there, too, but it was hidden far beneath the other feelings, and even Fiver could not grasp more than the faintest shadow of its true meaning. He turned away, and spoke quietly to Hazel, beyond the others' hearing. His brother spoke briefly to him in return, then turned to address the whole hall once again.  
  
"All right," he said. "This is the way of it: we've all had a bit of an exciting time over the last couple of days, I know. And I don't expect you all to forget what's happened, but it's past and gone now, and we really must turn our full attentions to Blackavar. After all, whatever killed him may come for us in time; it may be dangerous to do nothing. Fiver here has had an idea that may help. I'd rather not explain it now, as it may not come off, but I can assure you that I shan't be taking any unnecessary risks. That's all I have to say for now."  
  
A few minutes later, Hazel and Hyzenthlay squatted in the empty Honeycomb with a small group of other rabbits, including Fiver and Vernal. Fiver seemed restless, and his agitation was having an effect on Vernal in particular. Hazel spoke sharply to his brother to calm him down, but he was concerned that something was seriously wrong. Nevertheless, he swallowed his growing unease, and spoke in general terms to Vernal about what would be expected of him as a member of the Watership warren. Vernal listened with equanimity for the most part, until Holly suggested that he should join the Owsla on a trip to where Blackavar was buried the following day, in order to check that the place had not been disturbed.  
  
Vernal objected almost before Holly had finished speaking.  
  
"Oh no," he gasped, wide-eyed. "I couldn't possibly do that. It would be... it would be wrong of me, I'm sure."  
  
Holly was bemused. "But why on earth should it be wrong?"  
  
"W-well," Vernal stuttered, "because I don't really know the terrain around here. In-in any case, this would be a terribly important journey, and I don't have roots here. It would be a dangerous distraction for you to have to look out for me."  
  
"None of us were born on Watership Down," pointed out Silver. "And nor was Blackavar, come to that. I don't see the problem. A new face with us might mean a new idea or two as well, and any Owsla worth its salt is glad of those. Do come with us, old chap - a bit of fresh air would do you a world of good."  
  
Vernal could not be persuaded, however, and sat stock-still on the earthy floor as the others exchanged looks of confusion and surprise. It was clear that nothing short of the threat of force would succeed in changing Vernal's mind, and Hazel had no intention of going that far. He could see that the meeting was going nowhere, so after some brief planning for the morrow and a little derisory small talk, he allowed the rabbits to go their separate ways, Vernal with Strawberry to show him the way. Hazel himself went to reassure Léaozen that she had not been forgotten, and promised that his own attention would now be fully directed towards her dead mate.  
  
***  
  
It was a good while later, and Hazel and Hyzenthlay were lying close to each other in their burrow. For a long while neither spoke, each enjoying the smell and feel and sound of their mate, and giving thanks to Lord Frith that fate had brought them together. Occasionally Hyzenthlay would gently lick at the wound Stitchwort had inflicted on Hazel's ear, and he would purr softly at her touch.  
  
After a time - there was no way of telling how long - Hyzenthlay murmured to her companion:  
  
"What did Fiver say to you, when you were talking alone in the Honeycomb? There was more to it than you let on, wasn't there?"  
  
"Yes," said Hazel at once. "Fiver told me that when he looked into Vernal's eyes while he was speaking, he could sense something strange there; something very deep and profoundly unsettling. He couldn't find the words to tell me any more than that, though; he said he would talk it over with Vilthuril this evening. I wonder if it's got anything to do with Vernal's reluctance to go with the Owsla tomorrow."  
  
There was quiet for a few moments, broken only by the sound of Hyzenthlay's breathing and pulse. Both had quickened slightly. Then she spoke again, in the softest of whispers.  
  
"Perhaps it's that Vernal sees a little of his own situation in Blackavar's," she breathed. "Look at it this way: both rabbits were found lying cold and still underground, yet with not a mark upon them. Perhaps Vernal is frightened that the Black Rabbit may come for him as he must have done for Blackavar. Yet there is a difference: Vernal is alive, and Blackavar is dead. So what does Vernal have that Blackavar did not?"  
  
Hazel replied, "I don't know. But I'm sure Fiver wouldn't have told me what he did about Vernal's eyes unless he was certain. I can only hope that this isn't all some great trick being played by another warren who mean to attack us. I pray to Frith that isn't the case, because that would mean Strawberry really was a traitor, as Stitchwort claimed - and if I'm wrong about him and he is disloyal, then I have no future here: even if any attack were repelled, I would be forced out, or even torn to pieces, for supporting someone like that."  
  
"I'm sure Strawberry isn't a spy, Hazel," said Hyzenthlay soothingly, but she could sense her buck's anxiety, so she went on, "I think that we need to send the Owsla expedition out at dawn tomorrow - we've wasted enough time, and at this time of year the weather can still be very cold. The last thing we want is for a sudden snowfall to block things up completely."  
  
Hazel agreed with this eminently sensible assessment, proud as always of the mate he knew he could rely on completely, a mate whose courage and steadfastness had been such a help to Hazel's own rabbits long ago. Bigwig had once confided in him that without Hyzenthlay's calm reassurance, he would certainly have lost his nerve in the oppressive terror that surrounded him while spying in Woundwort's Efrafa - and what would have become of Watership then?  
  
He knew only too well, of course. Bigwig would have been defeated - perhaps not without sending several Efrafans to a meeting with the Black Rabbit, but Woundwort would consider that a small price. Defeated, however, but not killed - Woundwort was no fool, and would have realised that Bigwig presented an excellent chance to discover the whereabouts of the Watership warren. So he would have been handed over to Vervain and the Owslafa with the expectation that he could be made to talk.  
  
They would have been disappointed, however. Vervain had prided himself on his ability in extracting information from his prisoners, but Bigwig's loyalty and courage were such that Hazel knew he would have refused to betray his friends up to the very moment of his death. Vervain would have had to turn his attentions to those rabbits who were known to have consorted with Thlayli, and first among those would have been Hyzenthlay. He wondered how Vervain might...  
  
Hazel shuddered, and hastily blocked off his line of thinking. All that mattered now was that the fight had been won, Woundwort was no more, and both Bigwig and Hyzenthlay were safe and happy. El-ahrairah had been on their side, and against all the odds the warren had been saved from what appeared to be certain death. To dwell on what might have been would do him no good, especially with the mystery of Blackavar's death becoming more and more intractable and frustrating by the hour. Hazel contented himself with looking forward to hearing from the next morning's Owsla expedition, and settled down once more beside Hyzenthlay. 


	11. Old Ground

Chapter ELEVEN - Old Ground  
  
The Owsla party made its way out into the slate-grey dawn, followed by a number of the other rabbits who had come to see them off. These onlookers did not, however, include Vernal, who had stubbornly remained in his burrow despite the best entreaties of the others to persuade him that he would be welcome to accompany the Owsla on their journey.  
  
Bigwig paused at the mouth of the hole and gazed levelly at the torrents of water cascading from the overhanging roof of the burrow entrance, and shook his ears in some irritation.  
  
"It's rather cold outside, I'm afraid," he said to the others matter-of-factly, "and I don't much like the look of this rain."  
  
"He sounded just like Cowslip when he said that," remarked Hawkbit to Speedwell with amusement, just a little too loudly. Bigwig rounded on him angrily, and it was only Hazel's intervention that saved Hawkbit from a cuffing.  
  
"Now look here, Bigwig," said Hazel, "We really could do without any of that, you know. You need to be concentrating on keeping safe on this journey. And Hawkbit, do try not to be such a chump, there's a good fellow."  
  
Mollified somewhat, Bigwig rejoined Holly, Silver and Bluebell as they set out for the hole where they had buried Blackavar. Although still fresh in their minds, it seemed so long ago now, and there was a general feeling among the rabbits that they should not rest until the mystery of their friend's death was solved.  
  
As on the previous occasion, Kehaar had agreed to act as guide-cum-lookout for the rabbits, although the sheeting rain meant that visibility was inevitably affected, forcing the gull to fly lower than he would have liked - Bluebell had even suggested that he might prefer to swim along the streaming turf. As he put it, "We've had a go at being water-rabbits: Kehaar can be a grass-bird."  
  
"Dam' rain he come, is no good for see," remarked Kehaar, wheeling widely around over the rabbits' heads as they made their way towards Ashley Warren Farm. There was no extra weight to be carried this time, but nevertheless each one of them felt a burden in their hearts that could not be fully removed until their job was done. Something was missing, too - on the previous journey there had been a strong yet intangible feeling binding them together, while here, despite their companions, in some unutterable way they each felt alone to a greater extent than they had ever known.  
  
The journey to the grave-hole was largely uneventful. The only elil to come near were a couple of foraging kittens from one of the nearby farmhouses, who were swiftly chased off by Kehaar, the gull loudly contemptuous of such small animals being thought of as a threat by the four large rabbits. Otherwise, the wet and cold had conspired to give the rabbits a relatively easy passage.  
  
"Here," said Silver at last. "I can see we're at the hole - but look at it!"  
  
It was a terrible sight. All around the entrance to the burrow, the earth had been thrown up in great heaps, seemingly without rhyme or reason; and the entrance itself, so carefully stopped up a matter of days before, gaped open like some great door into the bowels of the earth itself. There was no sign of Blackavar's body.  
  
Holly turned to Bigwig.  
  
"This can't be any animal's doing," he said in a disbelieving tone. "Only men could have wrought such destruction, surely?"  
  
"And what might 'this' be?" came a sudden voice from behind one of the earthen heaps.  
  
Bigwig's fur rose immediately on his neck. He knew that voice well, knew who must have called to him - yet he knew equally that it could not be so. A mixture of anger, fear and sheer bewilderment took hold, and he fought to keep his head clear, for he knew in his deepest heart that here was an enemy more dangerous and black-hearted by far than Stitchwort, even than the great General himself. He looked up to see a large, dark-furred buck crest the top of the heap and gaze down at him with a kind of amused contempt.  
  
It was Vervain.  
  
* * *  
  
Back at Watership, Hazel and Vernal were alone in a burrow. Vernal would tolerate the other's presence, and even talk to him, so long as the question of his refusal to accompany Bigwig's group to Blackavar's grave-hole was not brought up. If Hazel ignored this restriction, or even attempted to ask Vernal the reason for it, Vernal would become angry and even violent, once striking out at Hazel so suddenly that he was almost knocked to the ground. Hazel did not respond to this directly, but merely continued talking on a different subject.  
  
"Vernal," he asked, "how well did you know Silverweed?"  
  
"Not all that well," replied the other in a flat tone. "Strawberry has told me about that poem Silverweed recited to you, and how apparently it was originally some sort of eulogy for me; but that surprised me a little, if truth be told, as we'd never had much to do with one another. Silverweed always seemed a bit withdrawn and even gloomy, I thought. I liked to be happy."  
  
Hazel took in this information, and continued.  
  
"Do you know what happened to Silverweed after we'd gone?"  
  
"Only what Strawberry told me; you'd have to ask him for the full details. But apparently he became more and more withdrawn and - well - strange. Some of the rabbits began to wonder if he was going tharn in the head, and there was some talk of driving him out. But Cowslip wouldn't have it."  
  
"I thought there was no Chief Rabbit in that warren?"  
  
"There wasn't. But that worked both ways, because it meant that on those few occasions when a rabbit did have a strong opinion on something, there was very rarely any opposition worthy of the name. There just wasn't the organisation for it, you know. So Cowslip standing up for Silverweed like that stopped anything really happening, other than a bit of grumbling."  
  
"Even so," said Hazel, "it seems awfully strange. Anyway, what happened after that?"  
  
"He died," replied Vernal simply. "Not the wires, either. A dog got him. Strawberry said that everyone had been very surprised, because he'd always seemed to be able to keep out of trouble - rather as this Fiver fellow does in this warren. I suppose it must have been just one of those things."  
  
Hazel felt that he was not getting anywhere, so excused himself, and went to find Fiver, who was playing bob-stones with Blackberry a little way off. The two were closely matched, Fiver's intuition and Blackberry's more analytical mind sparking off each other, and were regular opponents at the game.  
  
"I say, you chaps," said Hazel, "if you wouldn't mind leaving off for a moment, I'd like to have a talk to the pair of you."  
  
"If you're going to ask me to talk to Vernal," said Fiver, "then I shouldn't bother. I've had a go myself, and it's like talking to a rock once you get onto anything to do with Bigwig's party. I've tried and tried, and I just can't see what's under there. I know there's something, something deep and important - but there's a sort of a cover that he brings down whenever I get close. I don't even think he realises he does it, and if you mention it he either gets angry or just looks blank."  
  
Hazel scratched an ear reflectively, and decided to join in the bob-stones game for a while.  
  
* * *  
  
The two old adversaries stood stock-still, staring into one another's eyes, for what seemed like an age, until Holly appeared from further down the hill. He too was shocked at the identity of the newcomer, but on recovering himself growled loudly and bared his teeth. Silver and Bluebell joined him, with Kehaar circling conspicuously overhead - something which Bigwig was gratified to see made Vervain somewhat nervous. Holly moved closer, and spoke.  
  
"Now you listen to me, Vervain. I don't know how it is that you're alive, or what you're doing here, but I do know this: if you do not leave this place, now and forever, you will die here. You can see that we outnumber you four to one, and that we have the white bird. You would have no chance." Vervain remained where he was, and Holly repeated his threat: "Go, or you will be killed."  
  
Vervain still made no move, but replied, "You're making a bad mistake. I can tell you what happened here."  
  
Bigwig made to lunge at him, but Holly stopped him, saying, "Well then: out with it."  
  
Vervain twisted his features into a fearsome grimace, and licked his lips before speaking.  
  
"I bet you weren't expecting to see me again," he said in a tone of sneering amusement. "Everyone seems to think the elil got me, just as they did for the General. Oh, I don't doubt that he's a goner; he was no match for that dog, whatever he might have thought. But there wasn't much point in me going back to Efrafa: I could see that there was no future for me there under that traitor Campion. So one night I slipped away from the others - they were hardly in any shape to worry about one rabbit more or less - and lived as a hlessi for a while.  
  
"Of course the elil - pfeffil, mostly, where I was - knew I was around, but what most rabbits don't seem to realise is that they're generally very amenable to a bit of flattery - if you can speak a couple of words of their language, it works wonders. So I got hold of a couple of orphaned kittens and made them teach me some Feline. I couldn't learn much, just a few useful phrases, as they weren't alive for very long. But it was enough. From then on, all I had to do to avoid trouble was to set one cat against another. 'Sort of thing El-ahrairah did at his trial, if you remember.  
  
"As for this - all these heaps of earth - I did it. I expect you'll want to know why. Oh, that's easy. I was in the area - never mind how or why I came to be here - and thought I could smell rabbit. Not just any rabbit, either, but that wretch Blackavar. I wouldn't forget his smell in hrair years. Oh, don't look so surprised, Thlayli - I had enough to do with him back in Efrafa after all. He held up very well there. Considering."  
  
Vervain paused, and the silence on the hillside was intense, broken only by the steady spattering of the rain on the broken turf. No-one moved, and he continued.  
  
"But when I found him here, unmarked and unbroken, what else could I do? That thing needed to be taught a lesson before it was too late for me. So I set to work digging him out - and ripped him to pieces, as I should have done a long time ago."  
  
At last, Bigwig understood. Vervain himself was dying, not in body but in mind. His whole life had been one of madness, but it had been the cold, sane insanity of pure evil. Now, perhaps, the years of pain and suffering he had inflicted on others had taken their toll. Bigwig felt something almost like pity for one brief instant, before the reality of Vervain's actions in Efrafa reasserted itself in his own head. He looked around at his companions, and then back at Vervain, and his heart was gripped by the icy certainty that they all of them knew how this encounter must end.  
  
* * *  
  
Despite Kehaar's help, all four Watership rabbits had been badly slashed and bitten by the Efrafan buck before it was over. Holly in particular was in a bad way, the muscle in his left front paw badly damaged. He could still run, but not at any great speed, and not without considerable pain. With distaste and disgust, limping and sore, the Owsla pulled Vervain's almost unrecognisable body over to the lane, and left it in the centre of the sodden Tarmac. There, it would certainly be spotted before long, whether by men or by elil none amongst them knew or cared. By the morning, there would be no sign that a rabbit had ever lain there.  
  
Returning to what had been Blackavar's grave-hole, the four friends came together to decide what to do. The rain had grown heavier once again, and sluiced down their fur and whiskers, into their eyes and nostrils. When their breath had returned, talk turned to the great battle that had just taken place.  
  
"Frith and Inlé, there's a rabbit I thought we'd seen the last of a long time ago," said Bigwig with feeling. "At least we've done something to clean the place up this trip."  
  
"And trying to make out he was emulating El-ahrairah!" exclaimed Bluebell. "That buck was a disgrace to Rabbitry."  
  
"The way he talked about Blackavar like that," fumed Bigwig. "Death's too good for him. And if only we could have somehow stopped him finding Blackavar. I think-"  
  
"But this doesn't make sense," interrupted Silver. "Vervain said he'd ripped up Blackavar. But where is his body? The way he went on, you'd think Vervain had left fur and bones and so on all over the place. I think he was lying."  
  
The full import of this took a few moments to sink into the other rabbits' minds. But soon it was abundantly clear what had happened. Vervain had lied to them, knowing that it would mean his death, but knowing also that the implications for the Watershippers would be severe. His final act of madness had been intended as a kind of suicide - but his own was not the only death warrant he had signed. The Owsla were all four wounded, far from home, in bad weather, with the stench of fresh blood all around them. Even Kehaar could not hold off the entire Thousand. 


	12. Losing Your Way in the Rain

Chapter TWELVE - Losing Your Way in the Rain  
  
After some considerable discussion, the Owsla party had resolved to send Kehaar back to Watership Down to explain all that had gone on, and to ask two more rabbits to be sent to join them. These would reinforce the party and assist the injured Holly home, fighting off any possible attack. However, for the moment they were more vulnerable than ever.  
  
The four rabbits watched as the seagull soared away to the north-east. Once he had faded into the sullen grey murk of the horizon, Bigwig turned to the others.  
  
"That's the way to travel" he said. "I wouldn't mind getting wet through for the view from up there."  
  
"You wouldn't see much today," pointed out Bluebell. "This rain is extraordinary; it's not much better than it would be on a moonless night. You'd be better off as a bat, I should think. A fat bat to gobble a gnat."  
  
"I don't think I could fight a gnat at the moment," said Holly. "This paw really is a confounded nuisance. At least the rest of you only have flesh wounds; I'm in quite a bad way here, I think."  
  
"Oh, we'll look after you as much as we can, Holly," said Bigwig, as though a mother speaking to a nervous kitten newly come above ground. (As he had rather hoped, Holly was greatly annoyed at this. "Shows he still has some spirit, at least," he thought.) "Seriously, though," he went on aloud, "I think the rest of us can all run pretty well if we have to, at least for a short distance. But there's no point in beating around the bush - if it really comes to the crunch, and something does come for us that we're not up to fighting, then we may have to leave you behind."  
  
"Yes, I know," replied Holly. "And I wouldn't ask anything else of you. One thing I do need to say, though-"  
  
"Elil!" cried Silver suddenly. As indeed it was: the scent, although faint as yet, was unmistakeable, and becoming stronger. A stoat was attempting to use the cover provided by the wind and rain to come upon the rabbits unawares, and had Silver been only slightly less alert, they might have had no warning at all. Even as it was, it was only a matter of seconds before the animal appeared, making straight for the injured Holly.  
  
Bigwig at once forgot his former comments and immediately ran to help his stricken comrade, growling and aiming cuffs at Holly's assailant. The stoat was taken somewhat by surprise by Bigwig's aggression, but recovered quickly and caught him across the face with a great raking blow of his front paw, his needle-sharp claws scoring along the sodden fur.  
  
Startled, Bigwig jumped back, blinking the blood from his eyes, but Silver and Bluebell immediately took his place, staying back and using their claws to such an effect that the stoat's advances were frustrated at every turn, and at last the animal was fortunate to escape with its life into the long grass that grew around the ditches along the edge of the fields.  
  
"Well, that wasn't so bad, as it?" said Bigwig with some satisfaction, licking at a small scratch on a front paw. "Stoats are cowards, really, like most elil. You just have to keep at them and eventually they'll give it up and run away. Nice bit of action, if anything; shows we're on our mettle still. Everyone present and correct? Jolly good; let's get a move on, shall we?"  
  
There was an awkward silence at Bigwig's words. He looked up and realised why: Bluebell was nowhere to be seen.  
  
* * *  
  
Hazel had gone above ground to see some of the outskirters, something he (at Hyzenthlay's suggestion) had decided to do since Stitchwort's rebellion, despite the feelings of certain of the "old guard" (most notably, and inevitably, Bigwig) that doing so brought down their image in the eyes of the warren. "It's they who should be asking to see you," Bigwig had said irritably, although once it had become clear that Hazel was determined to go ahead with his plans, there had been no more open dissent.   
  
Hyzenthlay, therefore, was lying alone in her burrow when she became aware of the smell of another rabbit hesitating just outside the entrance. She recognised Léaozen's scent, and waited for the other doe to come in, but when she made no move Hyzenthlay got to her feet, and was just about to hop over to the burrow entrance when Léaozen spoke.  
  
"Er... Hyzenthlay-rah," came the doe's small, hesitant voice. "I'm sorry to disturb your rest, but I need to talk to you, er, I mean I'd like to, if it's all right-"  
  
"Oh, do come in, won't you?" interrupted Hyzenthlay. "You're quite welcome."  
  
Léaozen hopped slowly into the burrow. Hyzenthlay was pleased to see that she had lost the gaunt-faced, haunted look of a couple of days previously, and whilst her sadness at Blackavar's loss still showed plainly in her eyes she seemed stronger and more alert. Although she had not mentioned her concerns even to Hazel, Hyzenthlay had privately feared that Léaozen might literally pine away in her sorrow, perhaps crawling away one night to die alone as had Thrayonlosa so long ago. That, at least, seemed less likely now.  
  
"Er- is Hazel-rah not here?" asked Léaozen. Blackavar, being something of a traditionalist in such matters, had rather shared Bigwig's private opinion that for a warren to have a doe as Chief Rabbit, even jointly with her mate, was, as he put it in his more unguarded moments, "a bit much, really." Something of this attitude had rubbed off on Léaozen, and she was clearly uneasy at the idea of speaking to Hyzenthlay alone.  
  
Concealing her slight irritation at this, Hyzenthlay replied, "No; he's gone silf to speak to Frogbit and his friends."  
  
"Er... but it's raining terribly hard outside," pointed out Léaozen.  
  
"Oh, I know," answered Hyzenthlay. "But Frogbit seems to enjoy this sort of weather for some reason, and a few of the others have taken to joining him in silflaying in the rain. Knapweed said it made the grass sweeter or something like that. It is a little odd, I'll admit; but so long as it keeps them out of trouble I can't imagine Hazel will have any problems with it.  
  
"Mind you, *I* worry about him a little, out there in the cold and damp for so long. Never mind, though: tell me what's troubling you and let's see if I can help."  
  
She moved closer to Léaozen, the better to hear the other's quiet voice. However, what Léaozen said next shocked her.  
  
"Oh, I wouldn't say it was troubling, not exactly. But, er, I'd, er, that is... I'd like to take Vernal as a mate."  
  
Hyzenthlay did not know what to reply, and for long moments simply looked at Léaozen in plain astonishment. When she had recovered her composure, she asked Léaozen why she had felt it necessary to ask her permission.   
  
"Oh, it was Vernal's idea," said Léaozen. He said that as he was an outsider, it wouldn't be right for us just to pair up without Haz- er, the Chief Rabbits' approval. And I promised him I'd ask first."  
  
"But he's *not* an outsider," pointed out Hyzenthlay. "Not any more. He's a Watership rabbit now, and Watership rabbits take mates of their own free will. Hazel wouldn't like to think his rabbits thought of him as though he were Woundwort, you know. It does seem extremely odd - but then Vernal's done a fair few strange things since he's been with us, hasn't he? Doesn't seem to inclined to explain himself, either; I think I'd better go and talk to him about all this."  
  
Léaozen said nothing, but followed Hyzenthlay out of the burrow and down the runs to Vernal's burrow, where the buck was picking at a thorn in his paw. On seeing the two does appear, he asked them to help, and once the thorn was removed, he forestalled Hyzenthlay's inevitable question with one of his own.  
  
"I'm honoured you're here, Hyzenthlay-rah! I'm so glad you've come. But why didn't you just give Léaozen the answer she asked for?"  
  
"Do be sensible, Vernal," said Hyzenthlay in a tone that brooked no dissent. "You know perfectly well that this isn't the way we do things in Watership. Anyone would think you'd been brought up in Efrafa, not Cowslip's place. In any case, I've been meaning to talk to you for a while now. There are some things I need to make plain: maybe you're happy swanning around all mysterious as though you were some half-baked veheer, but I'm not, and neither of us is going anywhere until I get some sense out of you as to what in Frith's name is going on here."  
  
* * *  
  
Holly was distraught, and despite his exhaustion from the fight, and the chill of the rain and wind, his only thoughts were for his faithful companion. "Let me... find Bluebell," he panted. "I owe him... that after all he's done... for me."  
  
Bigwig refused, and spoke plainly to his injured colleague.  
  
"Now look here, Holly," he said. "You're not to go anywhere. What could you do in that state? You'd be killed by something or other long before sunset. Besides, what good would it do us to lose two more rabbits instead of one? We'll just have to hope that Bluebell makes out all right on his own; we didn't see anything take him, after all. Meanwhile, we need to get back to Watership Down, or there'll be more elil back for us pretty soon. It's not safe to hang around here."  
  
Holly, roused to anger at Bigwig's words, confronted him directly.  
  
"Is that... is that all that matters to you? Getting home and hiding... underground? Does Bluebell mean nothing to you at all? If you'd known what I felt, after I'd seen... Pimpernel killed by Cowslip's embleer gang; if you'd been on the point of lying down and letting the next homba take you, kept going at all only... by Bluebell's jokes and chatter; if you'd been through all that, you wouldn't talk such rot. In any case, what use would I be to the warren like this? I can't run or fight or track properly. And who'd pay any respect to... a lame buck?"  
  
"Ask your Chief Rabbit," said Bigwig quietly, growling under his breath.  
  
Silver, who had kept the clearest head of them all, saw at once that a fight between the two others was something that had to be avoided at all costs. "We really shouldn't get out of this if that happened," he thought to himself, and manoeuvred himself between the other two rabbits.  
  
"I say, you chaps," he said. "If we just hang around here doing nothing, then none of us are going to get home, are we? We need to get a move on, so that whoever Kehaar brings up with him won't be put in too much danger themselves. It's a shame about Bluebell, but there's no way we can go looking for him in weather like this. Bigwig's right, really: we'd end up with no Owsla at all, and that would put the whole warren in danger."  
  
Holly subsided at his friend's words. When he next spoke, his voice was so quiet it was almost a whisper, yet full of the most profound anguish.  
  
"But don't you see?" he said. "First Blackavar stopped running, and you've all seen how upset Clover was at that, being such good friends with Léaozen. And of course it's not been easy for me to try to comfort her what with all this dashing around all over the place. Then Stitchwort was killed by the great hrududu in the lane. And now Bluebell has disappeared as well, and if you're right then we shan't see him again. Bluebell and Blackavar were more than friends to me; they were heart-brothers, the only two I've ever had.  
  
"And when all's said and done, what have we got out of all this? Nothing; nothing but pain, misery and death. We still don't have any idea why Blackavar died, and since then we've lost two more rabbits, plus got the rest of us pretty scratched up out here. You remember when you were in the ditch and you thought I was the Black Rabbit? Of course I wasn't, but the more I think about it now, the more I think he's not only been calling Blackavar, or even Stitchwort. I believe he's calling the whole of Watership Down. Why, only The Black Rabbit himself can know. But Bigwig, Silver, I tell you this: our warren's as tharn in its way as Cowslip's ever was." 


	13. Out of Bounds

_A/N: Here it is at last! Since ffnet in their infinite wisdom now appear not to allow me to use the sensible device of asterisks to indicate a scene shift, I've been forced to resort to using hyphens. I don't like this format, but it seems I have no choice. Grumble.  
_

CHAPTER THIRTEEN - OUT OF BOUNDS

There was complete silence in Hyzenthlay's burrow, but at last Vernal spoke.

"I'm sorry, Hyzenthlay-rah," he said. "I simply can't explain. It's not a matter of not wanting to, you understand: it's that I couldn't make you believe me."

"You could at least try!" said Hyzenthlay in total exasperation. "I really don't want to sound harsh, Vernal... but I think the time has come when you need to understand that although we are all very happy for you to live with us as part of the warren, Hazel and I really can't allow things to carry on as they are."

Vernal took this in, and replied, "Does this mean I can't stay?"

"No, of course it doesn't! You're very welcome here, but you do need to be part of the warren, and as Chief Rabbits, Hazel and I need to know about you. It's just not safe otherwise - for any of us."

"Then I can't stay," said Vernal flatly.

"Oh, really, Vernal," replied Hyzenthlay. "Are you seriously telling me that you'd throw away all you've gained, go out into weather like this and try to live as a hlessi again, rather than explain yourself? Have you done something you're ashamed of, something that's making you frightened of telling me? I give you my word, Vernal: whatever you may have done in the past will be forgiven, and you can start again here. You can even choose a new name if you feel the need to do so."

"You don't understand," said Vernal. "If I told you, the warren would be in greater danger than it has ever been. In fact, it's in great danger already, but I think I can rescue it. But you must let me try."

"Frith above, Vernal, you sound like a stupid kitten doing feeble impressions of Fiver. I said I wouldn't let you leave here without an explanation, I meant it. Now, who are you?"

"I could be anyone," said Vernal. He turned and made to leave.

Hyzenthlay finally lost her temper. "That's enough," she said, and stamped on the floor of the burrow. Within seconds, two burly sentries had appeared at the entrance. "By my order, Vernal is to be confined to his burrow until Hazel or I say otherwise. I want him treated well and spoken to kindly - but don't let him leave."

---

The returning Hazel was met by an agitated Kehaar at the warren's main entrance.

"Meester 'Azel, you come! You not go underground now; you needed outside, over fields. Come quick, ya?"

Hazel was startled, and not a little annoyed at the gull who was blocking his way to his nice, warm - and dry - burrow. "Let me get this straight, Kehaar - you're saying that you want me to go outside again? Why? What's the matter? Is it the Owsla? And why can't Hyzenthlay or Blackberry or Dandelion go instead? I'm dripping wet, Kehaar; I don't want to die of cold out here."

"Ya, ya! Ees for come see Meester 'Olly. He 'urt, not ver' bad but he not run so good."

"Hurt? How was he hurt?"

Kehaar spat. "Dat dam' rabbit, he worse than elil."

"Which rabbit? What do you mean?" asked Hazel.

"I tell you on way," said Kehaar, losing patience. "You come, Meester 'Azel!" And with that he took off and circled low overhead, leaving Hazel to follow him in a mixture of irritation, concern and sheer bemusement.

---

Hyzenthlay opened her eyes and sniffed the air. There was no doubt about it: Vernal had escaped alone. But how could a single buck have knocked down not only she herself but two trained sentries? They were as much at a loss as she, and so she went to see Fiver, who was nibbling on the last of a carrot with a detached air, and asked him whether he had any ideas.

"I don't know, for certain," said Fiver slowly, "but I've been giving all this quite a bit of thought. And it seems to me that Vernal is making himself the centre of attention in this warren - he's done that now, at any rate - but I don't think he has any intention of hurting us. I think he's being driven by something else, something that we can't properly comprehend."

"Is he dangerous?"

"Not in the way you mean."

"Then how?"

"That I can't say. I just feel that he knows what he is here to do, and will do it whatever we say or do to him. You've just found that out for yourself, after all. The only way to stop Vernal," added Fiver plainly, "would be to kill him."

Hyzenthlay was taken aback. "Surely you're not saying we should do that, Fiver?"

"I'm not saying that, no. But we don't know what he has in mind. A dark veil has fallen over this warren since Vernal's appearance amongst us, and that veil will not be lifted until his time is over. What the veil hides, who can say? Perhaps it is great danger and evil, or perhaps great blessings for the warren." Fiver shivered slightly. "But whatever it may be, we cannot stop it. We cannot. Cannot."

---

The rain, though still heavy and cold, had eased off very slightly, which cheered the Owsla as they huddled together under a stray rhododendron bush on the edge of a hanger. Silver and Bigwig seemed relatively calm, but Holly was in considerable pain, this exacerbated by his concern for Bluebell.

Bigwig was stumped. "I wish Hazel were here," he thought. "I'm not much use at a time like this, when what a chap really needs is some comforting words and a bit of calming down. I'm snared if I know what to say to Holly." He said nothing aloud, however, and made to nibble at a patch of grass overhung by one of the bush's branches. His prayers were soon answered, however, as Kehaar landed noisily beside him.

"Bigwig?" came a faint voice through the wind. "Are you all right?"

"Oh, I think so, Hazel," said Bigwig. "Silver will keep, too. And Vervain - Kehaar told you about him? - he won't be bothering us again. But as for the others... Holly here isn't able to run properly with that paw of his, and as for Bluebell-"

"Where is Bluebell, anyway?" interrupted Hazel impatiently. "Don't tell me he's going to play hide and seek at a time like this!"

"That's what I was about to tell you," said Bigwig with some restraint. "We don't know where he is. One minute he was next to me; the next, gone. I'm a touch concerned for him, if the truth be told."

At that moment, the rabbits realised that they were being approached at some speed by another, though at first it was impossible to see who it was through the sheeting downpour. After a few seconds, however, it became clear that it was Vernal, who hurtled into the small group without slowing down, almost knocking Hazel flying as he did so.

"Here I am!" said Vernal brightly. "I just thought I'd come along to see what was what, Hazel-rah, and maybe try to give you a paw with... well, with anything that needs doing," he finished vaguely.

Hazel was angry. "Now, look here, Vernal-" he began, but the other buck did not stop to hear what he should be looking here about. Instead, he looked into Hazel's eyes and spoke clearly and without emotion, leaving the Chief Rabbit in no doubt that what he said was no more than the simple truth.

"Listen to me!" ordered Vernal. "Listen to me, all of you, and do exactly what I say. Don't ask questions, and don't try to stop me. Otherwise your friend Holly will die."


	14. Shadow's End

Suddenly, a large rabbit crashed out of the undergrowth and bore Vernal to the ground, holding him there even as he struggled, showing its teeth and growling. Bigwig realised that it was none other than Hyzenthlay, and sighed with relief. No coward he, Bigwig would have killed Vernal had it become necessary, but as in the sudden quiet he heard the cows tearing the grass on the lower Down, he was relieved indeed to see her appear on the scene.

After a moment, Hyzenthlay let Hazel and Buckthorn take over in holding down Vernal, and hopped over to the little group of Owsla. "What's going on, Bigwig?" she asked.

"I wish I knew, Hyzenthlay... er... rah," came the answer. "If you ask me, that Vernal's been nothing but trouble ever since he turned up, but I really didn't think he'd start threatening us. I don't understand it, to tell you the truth: he'd have been ripped to shreds if he'd really tried to attack. Perhaps you should ask him, now he's in no position to argue."

Hyzenthlay agreed, and returned to Hazel and Buckthorn. "Let him up, would you?" she said. "But stay close, and if he tries anything like that again, well... do what you have to."

The rabbits clustered around Vernal, one or two of them growling and scuffling at the ground with their claws.

"Do you know what happened to Blackavar?" he blurted out suddenly.

"Of course we do," said Hazel. "Well, we know he died here. We still don't know why, and I'm snared if I can think of anything. But what has that got to do with you?"

Vernal's reply was shocking.

"Blackavar didn't die here. He died in Efrafa, a long, long time ago."

"What on earth do you mean?" questioned Hazel. "We all saw Blackavar brought out of Efrafa, and we've been living with him for months since."

"I'll tell you what I mean," said Vernal calmly. "But you must promise to hear me through."

Hazel agreed to this, despite Bigwig's annoyance, and Vernal spoke again.

"Of course you know about Blackavar's failed escape attempt. Now, he was a proud rabbit. He could no more endure being humiliated than a snake can fly. Campion tried to persuade the Council that he should be killed quickly; it sounds rough, but by the standards of Efrafa that would have been a lesser punishment. But Vervain had the Council's ear. He despised Blackavar, and pressed Woundwort to make him suffer. In the end, Woundwort was won over by Vervain's argument, and so his sentence of death was deferred. Everyone knew that he'd be killed when all the Marks had seen him-"

"Hyzenthlay told me that," put in Bigwig.

"Yes. But as I was saying, the one thing Blackavar's spirit couldn't stand up to was humiliation. His torment went on like that for only a couple of days, and then he died; just lay down and closed his eyes, and that was that."

The Watership rabbits stared in total astonishment at Vernal.

"But..." started Silver, then lapsed into confused silence once more.

"You are mistaken," said Hazel. "Bigwig here found Blackavar, and brought him out with the others. Then he spent the winter here with us, until he stopped running just a few days ago. You must be thinking of another rabbit."

"No," said Vernal softly, but with such utter conviction that Hazel once more became silent.

"No," repeated Vernal. "Hazel - Hazel-rah - do you not understand?"

"I'm afraid I don't," replied Hazel. "Now look here: we're all tired, and it's been a long day. I suggest you tell us what you mean, as plainly as you can."

"And without messing around any more, either," growled Bigwig testily.

"Thlayli, you - and the Owsla - should know better even than Hazel. Tell me, do you remember carrying Blackavar's body across the fields to his grave-hole?"

"Yes, of course," said Bigwig, making little effort to restrain his impatience. "What about it?"

"It was sunset," said Vernal. "The light at sunset is a revealing light: it can show things that are not always visible. Tell me - tell me what you saw as you carried him."

Buckthorn cut in. "It was a calm evening," he said, "and the light was almost horizontal by that time. I remember noticing how it almost seemed to sparkle on Blackavar's fur, and even more so on his ears. You know, now I come to think of it, that was odd, because his ears were in shadow a lot of the time, since there were four of us carrying him, so one of us was generally between his head and the sun."

Buckthorn was about to continue, but became aware of a new presence alongside him. It was Fiver, out of breath and shaking with exhaustion, who had followed Hazel and Hyzenthlay from the warren, heedless of the others' attempts to stop him. His eyes were wide in something almost like awe.

"My lord," breathed Fiver to- to Vernal, Buckthorn realised with a start. Then he too felt the wave of realisation crash over him. In the gathering gloom, it was possible to see the faint starlight glow that emanated from the ears of the buck who squatted before them, and Buckthorn realised that he was looking into the eyes of the Prince with a Thousand Enemies himself.

El-ahrairah - for it was indeed he - nuzzled Fiver gently, and spoke again. "This small buck knows more than most rabbits can ever begin to see. And as I think you understand now, the rabbit you saved from Woundwort and Vervain was not Blackavar, for Blackavar's time on this earth was done. He runs with me now in my own Owsla, and there he shall remain. No: the rabbit you brought out of Efrafa; the rabbit who you carried over the Down; that rabbit was me."

Holly spoke for the first time, slowly and with considerable melancholy. "Then... then we didn't save Blackavar after all. We were too late."

El-ahrairah looked him in the eye. "No, Holly. You were not too late. You took the risks for your friend, and you saved the Efrafans from a life of tyranny. You gave others life, and hope, and you showed what Rabbitry can be. And you thought I was Blackavar, just as you later thought I was Vernal. I was neither... but also both. Even after he had stopped running, Blackavar lived on for you, in your hearts, as the symbol of what you had defeated."

"And he always will," said Hazel. "The Blackavar we knew will never leave our memories, and we shall honour him always." He paused for a moment. "But why did you threaten to kill Holly just now?"

"Because he would have killed me otherwise. Can you imagine how an honourable rabbit such as he would have felt when he realised - as he would have done - who it was he had attacked? His heart would have been black and icy, and he would have been lost to the elil within two days. I could not fight him, so I had to shock him - luckily you and your mate turned up just then, otherwise things might have become rather awkward even so."

At the reference to her, Hyzenthlay spoke up at last. "There is something else, my lord-"

"You speak of Bluebell," said El-ahrairah. "This may be hard for some of you to hear - especially you, Captain Holly... but Bluebell also died long ago, at the hands of the men who destroyed your former warren. He was lucky, and died at once; he now runs by my side... as indeed he has always done."

"Then what-" stammered Holly in total confusion, before the rabbit with the starlight ears spoke once more.

"Even the Prince with a Thousand Enemies cannot work alone," he said gently. "Like any other rabbit, he needs his companions."

Holly stared. "Rabscuttle?" he managed, astonished. "But... how... why...?"

"Do not ask me how or why, Captain. Those are questions that I may not answer. Simply know that what is, is what must be. Lord Frith in his wisdom has spoken, and in the end we are all his servants."

In the sudden quiet, a gentle breeze passed over the Down and ruffled the rabbits' fur as they gathered around the Prince of Rabbits. El-ahrairah squatted serenely in front of the stunned Watership rabbits, and catching Hazel's eye, spoke one more time.

"May Frith watch over you and your friends, Hazel-rah and Hyzenthlay-rah" said El-ahrairah. "Although the rabbit you thought you knew, you never met, Blackavar's gift to your warren will be with you wherever you may be." And with that, he turned, and with a turn of speed that took the watching Watership rabbits' breath away, bounded away over the rolling grass of Watership Down and disappeared into the distance.

THE END 


End file.
